Fishing Ports of the Mid-Atlantic

by

Bonnie McCay and Marie Cieri

Report to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council,

Dover, Delaware, April 2000

Department of Human Ecology, Cook College, Rutgers the State University, New Brunswick, New Jersey

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2. New York's Fishing Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

3. New Jersey's Fishing Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

4. Delaware’s Fishing Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

5. Maryland's Fishing Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

6. Virginia's Fishing Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

7. North Carolina’s Fishing Counties and Ports . 132

8. References Cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

2

1. Introduction

This report is a social and economic profile of the fishing ports and coastal counties of the

Mid-Atlantic region. It covers all but one of the states that have representatives on the Mid-

Atlantic Fishery Management Council: New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and

North Carolina.1

We tried to cover the recreational as well as commercial fisheries. We include

descriptions of recreational fishing presence in the fishing ports visited. Our report provides

descriptive information on the recreational fisheries, as well as other activities and land use issues

in the ports. Our main goal was to study the fishing ports, as such, and thus we were precluded

from a quantitative assessment of the recreational fisheries. The commercial weighout data from

the National Marine Fisheries Serivce (NMFS) provide the only systematic source of data on a

port basis. To compensate, we provide detailed social and cultural analyses of recreational

fisheries o f W anche se, Nor th Caro lina, and the Mana squan River are a of Ne w Jerse y.

The sources of information for this report are: (1) federal census and employment data,

analyzed for the counties associated with the commercial fisheries of each state; (2) NMFS weigh-

out data on 199 8 land ings , by species, gear-typ e, and por t, toge ther w ith sim ilar da ta, by c oun ty,

from the state of North Carolina; and (3) field visits and interviews, mostly carried out in June and

July of 1999 by Marie Cieri and Jamie Gates, graduate students at Rutgers University and the

Univ ersity o f Flor ida, re spectively. In a fe w cases we als o use d other pu blishe d studies , as w ell

as inf orm ation gathered from field vis its and inte rview s don e by M cCa y and D oug las W ilson in

1998 as part of a study of the social and cultural impacts of proposed changes in the

management of highly migratory species. Numerous people helped us by explaining the nature of

a state's fisheries, by pointing out where the fishing ports actually are (a very difficult task in many

places), and by spending time to talk with us on the telephone and in person. We have protected

the identities of our informants in the text, making it difficult to thank them properly. Clay Heaton,

of the M id-Atlantic F ishery Ma nagem ent Cou ncil, helped us m anage the weigh out data.

An important context for the study is National Standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery C onserv ation and Mana gem ent Act (M SFC MA), w hich state s that:

“Conservation and management measures shall, consistent with the conservation

requirements of this Act (including the prevention of overfishing and rebuilding of

overfished stocks), take into account the importance of fishery resources to fishing

communities in order to (A) provide for the sustained participation of such communities,

and (B) to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on such

comm unities.”

Section 3(16) of the MSFCMA defines a “fishing community” as:

“a community which is substantially dependent on or substantially engaged in the

harvesting or processing of fishery resources to meet social and economic needs, and

includes fishing vessel owners, operators, and crew and United States fish processors

that are ba sed in su ch com munity.”

1

Pennsylvania also has a seat on the Council but its commerc ial fishery, at least in 1998, was limited to a small fishery for horseshoe crabs in Chester County along the Delaware. Consequently, it was not part of this study.

3

Our approach to identifying fishing communities is to focus on places identified as “ports”

by the port agents of the NMFS. W e recognize that doing so may not capture the full scope and

nature of the communities in which vessels owners, operators, crew and processors work and

live, and which are dependent on fisheries to meet their social and economic needs. In many

regions, including the Mid-Atlantic, harvesters are often highly mobile, landing fish or shellfish at

distant and changing ports. Furthermore, given the high rates of population growth and

developmen t in the nation’s coastal regions, coastal municipalities, villages, towns, etc., are

increasingly dominated by tourism or suburbanized, making traditional fishing activities appear

mar ginal, desp ite their long-s tanding a nd con tinuing soc ial, cultural, and econo mic im portanc e.

In addition , riising cos ts of c oas tal pro perty a nd other f acto rs inc reas e the likelihood that p eop le

engaged in fishing live and spend their money away from the place where the fish are landed or

where they are processed. That is one of the reasons that we limited our use of census and labor

data to the counties. We figured that people who worked ou t of specific port are likely to live

somewhere within the county, if not in the town or village identified with the port. (Another reason

we provided county-level data is that economists are likely to use county-level data when

generating econom ic impact analyses using program s such as IMP LAN.) W e differ, however,

from interpretations of National Standard 8 that would preclude the fishing businesses and

families of the Mid-Atlantic from the definition of “fishing commu nity” if they happen to work or live

in places that have become important bedroom comm unities or tourist areas. Our delineation of

the fishing ports is a s tart toward identifying the g enuine fis hing com mun ities of the M id-Atlantic.

We were unable, within the scope of our project, to do the in-depth community research

being ca rried out in the New E ngland a nd Sou th Atlantic reg ions, und er the M ARF IN prog ram .

Our method was similar to the "rapid rural appraisal" approach: after doing a little background

rese arch , we vis ited th e plac es ide ntified to us as fis hing p orts a nd ta lked with peop le who wo rk in

the fisheries in those places. We rarely had more than one day in a place, and thus we could not

talk with many people or obtain the kinds and amounts of information that would be required for

solid research on the fishing communities. The report can, however, help sketch the outlines of

fishing ports and, in some cases, fishing communities, and provide guidance and essential

back ground inform ation for so cial and ec onom ic impa ct analyse s.

The report was done with the idea of eventually being able to identify differing kinds and

degrees of vulnerability to regulatory change, following Douglas Wilson's impact assessment for

the Highly Migratory Species division of the National Marine Fisheries Service (Wilson and McCay

1998). An alyses of w eigh- out data p rovid e info rmation on de gree s of d ependence on ce rtain

species or species complexes, one kind of vulnerability. Census and employment data give an

idea of the socio-economic condition of the area, including the cost of living, the likelihood of

finding other work, poverty levels, and education levels, all of which may contribute to the

vulnerab ility of comm unities and individuals.

Our field work paid particular attention to another factor, often neglected in social studies

of fishing communities: how much the people and governing bodies of a fishing port support the

fishing industry, or, conversely, the land-use pressures against commercial and recreational

fishing. T his is exp ressed in land use planning, zo ning, varian ces, an d nuisan ce ordina nces. In

mos t places w e visited, ther e is strong econo mic pr essure to conve rt waterfro nt prope rties to

residential and recreational uses, making it difficult for commercial fishing operations to expand

and, in some cases, even to continue. Service industries are often gone from fishing ports,

forcing b oat-own ers or do cks to g o far to ob tain need ed serv ices suc h as rep airs and w elding. In

som e com mu nities , the c om me rcial fis hing a rea h as re ceive d spe cial zo ning p rotec tion, a nd in

others it has not. There is also variation in the availability of affordable dock space, whether

private or public. In some places there are ordinances against working in certain hours, to protect

home-owners nearby. Local support is also expressed in the presence or absence of cultural

even ts, su ch as seaf ood festiv als an d m onume nts to fishe rmen, and ho w the fishin g indu stry is

4

represented, if at all, in brochures and other materials used by chambers of commerce and tourist

offices.

Vulnerability is affected by people's ability to organize and work together for common

goals. We regularly asked about associations and other organizations to which fishermen and

their families and other workers might belong (generally finding that this remains a weak point for

most fishing communities in the region). We also asked about where fishermen "hang out," for

coffee or drinks, suspecting that the existence of such places in a fishing port is an indicator of

social interaction among fishermen, and thus a basis for potential communication and

organization. (It may also be a good indicator of whether a fishing port is also a fishing

community). Again, our report can only offer hints; other research must be done to followup on

these q uestions .

We regularly asked certain other questions as well, including the ethnicity and gender of

fishermen, dock workers, and packing and processing plant workers. There are very few women

engaged in fishing per se, but they do exist and mu st have important stories to tell. Here and there

we were told of ethnic minorities in the fisheries, particularly Vietnamese, although we did not

meet any. On the processing and marketing side, major changes seem to have taken place,

reflected in increased reliance on recent emigrants from Mexico, Central America, Southeast

Asia, and other regions and less involvement of local 'whites' and African-Americans. Again,

these are impressions gained from quick visits and interviews that need to be verified and

explored in greater depth. Labor is a general issue for the fisheries, one that came up in several

contex ts, including difficulties in m any areas finding pe ople to wo rk on the boats.

Following standard scientific guidelines for protecting the human subjects of research, we

have no t nam ed our info rma nts or the b usiness es we o bserve d and vis ited. W e have a lso tried to

protect businesses by not describing in detail the weighout data for very small places or fisheries,

although the N ational Ma rine F ishe ries S ervic e and the s tates alrea dy do this to som e deg ree in

their r epo rting. T he fie ld res earc h for this re port w as supported by a grant fr om the M id-Atla ntic

Fishery Management Council. Analyses of census, employment, and fisheries data and writing

were supported by Rutgers University and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station. The

authors are, how ever, fully resp onsible fo r errors o r misinte rpretations .

The report is organized as follows: There is one chapter per state. The introduction

includes a table of landings by port or other unit for the state. A demographic and employment

profile for a coastal county is followed by profiles of the fisheries, based upon NMFS or, in the

case of N orth C arolin a, sta te da ta. W here poss ible, th e fish eries are d efine d by fis hing p ort (in

North Carolina these data are only available to the level of county). Tables are presented which

summarize all of the fishing gears used in 1998, by percentage of total pounds and value, and the

same but only for the major species caught in 1998. Our definition of major is representing at

least two percent of the total poundage or value, or both, in 1998. We also summarize total

landings and total numbers of species. We then give the results of field observations and

interviews, where these are available from fieldwork done in the summers of 1998 and 1999. The

selection of sites and interviewees was done through consultation with MAFMC council members,

Sea G rant m arine adv isory agen ts, fishing ind ustry m emb ers, and other kn owledg eable pe ople.

Bonnie J. McCay, Professor Marie Cieri, Ph.D. Student

Department of Human Ecology Geography Department, Faculty of Arts &

Cook College, R utgers U niversity Scienc es, Rutg ers Un iversity

5

2. New York's Fishing Ports2

New York's commercial fisheries are concentrated on Long Island, which extends from

Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, to the far eastern ports of Montauk and G reenport. There

are also small, but historically and culturally important, fisheries for migratory species on the

Hudson River and other rivers. The Great Lakes fisheries are entirely recreational and beyond the

scope of this repo rt.

In 1998, almost 55 million pounds, worth over 84 million dollars ex-vessel, and of course

muc h mo re when multiplied b y values cre ated as seafoo d is proce ssed, d istributed, an d sold to

consumers, were landed in New York and recorded by the NMFS (Table NY1). Apart from the

"Other New York" mentioned below, the major contributors to value were "Other Suffolk"

(including the many and valuable shellfish and crustacean fisheries of the eastern end of Long

Island), and then Montauk and Hampton Bays (i.e. Shinnecock) on the south fork. Other

impo rtant ports include G reenpo rt, Freepo rt (and ne ighboring Point Loo kout), an d Islip. W e

visited mo st of th e por ts identified in inter views with s tate o fficia ls and local in dus try per sonnel.

Information on the significant party and charter boat fisheries of New York are available in another

report (M cCay an d O'Ne il 1999a).

New York is on the boundary of the New England and the Mid-Atlantic ecological and

institutional systems, and the diversity of species as well as fisheries agencies and laws involved

is very high. Its fisheries are also difficult to characterize in relation to NMFS weigh-out data and

other information because they are quite widely dispersed. There are many well-known ports but

large quantities of fish and shellfish are landed elsewhere. In addition, state waters (to 3 nautical

miles) are extremely important to the state's fisheries. New York State's data on those fisheries

do not include NMFS port codes. Consequently, the category "Other New York" in the NMFS

weighou t data is very large , acc oun ting fo r 35% of the value and 2 3% of the poun ds lan ded in

1998. Many of the fisheries of Long Island and Lon g Island Sound, particularly for lobsters, are

represented in this category and not assigned to particular ports. The category also includes surf

clamming and other fisheries that take place exclusively in state waters.

The NMFS weighout category "other New York" represents all landings for which

information on the port, or the county, were not included or available. These are mostly landings

from state waters for fisheries for which data are collected by the state but also include landings

for which the NMFS port agents or contractors could not find information. It is a very large port

cate gory, th e larg est, a t 12.6 million pou nds or $2 9.7 m illion in 1 998 . The se lan dings were ma inly

of inshore lobster (60.5% lbs., 90% value), but also surf clams (31% pounds, 8.4% value), and 21

other species, caught in small quantities with gill nets, handlines, pelagic longlines, pound nets,

cast nets, diving gear, seines, and "by hand," i.e. hand raking and treading for shellfish. The hard

clam fishery is very im portant in "o ther Ne w York " as well as "o ther Suf folk" and "other Na ssau."

Crabs are very significant in "other New York:" blue crab, plus smaller amounts of lady crab,

herm it crab , gree n cra b, jon ah cr ab, and ro ck c rab w ere ta ken mo stly with otter t rawls . This

cate gory in cludes a la rge h and line fis hery f or blu efish , scu p, black s ea ba ss, a nd es pec ially

striped bass.

A no te of c aution: the landin gs re porte d for New York State ports ma y or m ay not be all-

inclusive. It is always possible that "other New York" landings actually were due to activity from

those ports.

2 Revised April 20, 2000

6

Table NY1: Landings by County and Port, New York, 1998

Por t Name

Coun ty Pounds Pounds Value Value

OTH ER C OLU MBIA COL UMB IA 27,998 0.1% 41,957 0.0%

OTHER DUCHESS DUCHESS 6,857 0.0% 8,736 0.0%

OTHER GREENE GREENE 61,425 0.1% 64,948 0.1%

BROOK LYN KINGS 29,995 0.1% 18,169 0.0%

OTHER NASSAU NASSAU 595,246 1.1% 3,998,216 4.7%

FREEPORT NASSAU 1,865,755 3.4% 1,504,849 1.8%

OTHER NY NOT-SPECIFIED 12,572,737 22.9% 29,761,316 35.3%

OTHER QUEENS QUEENS 1,369 0.0% 2,044 0.0%

OTHER ROCKLAND ROCKLAND 9,508 0.0% 14,060 0.0%

OTHER SU FFOLK SUFFOLK 5,822,837 10.6% 21,833,666 25.9%

MONTAUK SUFFOLK 12,035,691 22.0% 12,108,833 14.4%

HAMPT ON BAYS SUFFOLK 13,140,570 24.0% 9,662,770 11.5%

GREENPORT SUFFOLK 7,831,441 14.3% 4,140,488 4.9%

ISLIP SUFFOLK 204,442 0.4% 539,449 0.6%

MATTITUCK SUFFOLK 257,040 0.5% 286,569 0.3%

AMAGANSETT SUFFOLK 250,295 0.5% 234,602 0.3%

SHINNECOCK SUFFOLK 2,931 0.0% 13,523 0.0%

OTHER ULSTER ULSTER 15,934 0.0% 21,549 0.0%

OTHER

WESTC HESTER WESTC HESTER 55,495 0.1% 67,075 0.1%

Tota l 54,787,566 100.0% 84,322,819 100.0%

Note: S hinneco ck and Ham pton Ba ys entries re fer to the s ame port.

Nass au Co unty P rofile (includes the fishing ports of Mount Sinai, Oceanside, Point Lookout and

Freeport) (In this and subsequent chapters, the county profiles are mainly based on 1990 census

data plus more rece nt employmen t data).

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Nassau County had a population of 1,287,348. Females

outnumbered males by a small amount, 3%. Rural areas claimed less than 1% of the population,

and no one res ided on a farm .

7

Racial and Ethnic Composition

Eighty-six percent of the Nassau County population was white while 8.6% of the population was

black. American Indian and Asian each made up a small percentage of the population. The

Hispanic population was also small, at 6%. Of the population, 86.8% was native. Of this 86.8%,

88.9% were born in New York. The largest declared ancestry was Italian (313,289 people)

followed by Irish (256,182 people) and Germ an (213,487 people).

Age Structure

According to the 1990 Census, the 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest. It comprised

31.1% of the population. Of the population, 21.8% was under 18 years of age and 14.2% was

over 65 years of age.

Household Composition

There were 431 ,515 total households in Nassau C ounty. Of these total households, 79.8% were

family households and 10.2% were headed by single women. There were, on average, 2.94

persons per household. Of the total households, 17.1% were occupied by householders living

alone.

Of the 4 31,515 occup ied hous ing units, 80 .4% we re owne r occup ied and 1 9.6% re nter occ upied.

Of th e 14,777 vaca nt houses in N assau C oun ty, 2,86 2, or 1 9.4% , were used for se asonal,

recreational, or occasional use. Median value of owner occupied units was $209,500 and median

rent was $678. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.1%.

Educational Trends

Of the 881,037 people age 25 or older in Nassau County, 84.2% held a high school diploma or

higher, and 30% held a bac helor's degree or higher.

Income

Per capita income for the County was $23,352 in 1989 and median household income was

$54,283. Of the 1,267,148 people for whom poverty was determined in 1989, 47,192 people, or

3.7%, were below the poverty line. Of the 47,192 people below the poverty line, 34,902 were 18

years of a ge or olde r.

Employment

Of 1,03 9,774 pe ople 16 yea rs of age or older in N assau Coun ty, 66.6% w ere in the lab or force .

Of these, 99.8% were in the civilian work force, of which 4.1% were unemployed. More recent

figures for the unemploym ent for the metropolitan area of Nassa u and Suffolk Coun ties were

3.9% in 1997 and 3.2% in 1998. Overall, unemployment rates were steady throughout 1997 and

1998.

Employment Industries

Of the 661,486 em ployed persons 16 years of age or older in Nass au County, less than 1% we re

em ployed in the a gricu lture, f ores try, and fishe ries in dus tries s ecto r. Th ere w ere 7 1 fish ers in

1990. The largest sector of all was administrative support occupations, including clerical, at

19.7% followed by professional specialty occupations at 17.5%. T he next largest sectors were

executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; retail; sales; finance, insurance, and real

estate; and health services.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry 3

3Note: The 1990 census included information on occupation by race and gender. The information

is offered he re, and e lsewhe re in the co unty pro files, with the caution that the inform ation is likely to

be a highly inaccurate reflection of actual participation in fishing.

8

In Nassau Co unty, in 1990, there were 14 captains or officers of fishing vessels, all of which were

white men. There were also 57 occupational fishers, 40 of whom were white males and 17 black

males.

Fishery Profile, Freeport, NY:

According to NMFS weighout data (Tables NY-FP1, 2), Freeport and neighboring Point

Lookout (included in the Freeport port code) are almost entirely dependent on otter trawl landings

(over 89 % pou ndage , 87% v alue), and the m ajor spe cies are loligo squid a nd silver ha ke, with

sm aller a mo unts of sc up, w eak fish, b luefis h, bu tterfis h, summ er flou nder, othe r floun ders , Atlan tic

mackerel. Gill-nets are used for bluefish, angler, and other species, and there are small handline,

pot, pound-net and bay shellfisheries associated with these ports.

9

Table NY-FP1: Landings by Gear, Freeport, NY, 1998

GEAR TYPE, Freeport, NY Lbs. % Value %

Comm on seine, haul seine 0.3% 0.1%

Gill net, sink, other 7.0% 6.1%

Handline, other 2.5% 3.8%

Pot/trap, lobster, insh nk 0.6% 2.8%

Pot/trap, lobster, offsh nk 0.0% 0.0%

Pots + traps, blue crab 0.0% 0.0%

Pots + traps, conch 0.0% 0.0%

Pots + traps, fish 0.1% 0.1%

Pound net, fish 0.2% 0.2%

Rakes, other 0.2% 0.0%

Tongs & grabs, clam 0.0% 0.0%

Trawl, otter, bottom, fish 89.3% 86.8%

Total landings, rounded 1998: 1,865,800 lbs

Total value, rounded 1998: $1,504,800 dollars

Note: 0.0 = >0.0% but <0.06%

Table NY-FP2: Landings by Major Species, Freeport, NY, 1998

Bluefish 4.6% 2.1%

Butterfish 2.8% 2.6%

Flounder, summer 2.8% 7.9%

Flou nde r, yellow tail 4.0% 2.3%

Hake, silver 27.4% 16.2%

Mac kere l, atlan tic 2.5% 0.8%

Scup 4.4% 8.8%

Squid (loligo) 37.3% 39.3%

Weakfish, squeteague 2.7% 2.8%

Lobster 0.6% 2.8%

Sea bass, black 0.8% 1.9%

Number of species: 62

10

Other sp ecies of M AFM C inte rest b y perc enta ge to tal valu e 199 8: Tile fish (0.1), and I llex sq uid

(0.0). Surf clams are also lan ded he re but are reported as "Oth er New York."

Field Observations and Interviews, Point Lookout and Freeport, NY, July 1999

Point Lookout

Point Lookout is a small beach town on the south side of Jones Inlet, across from

Freeport which is inside the inlet. Fishing boats may move back and forth between Point Lookout

and Freeport, hence NMFS' practice of coding both as "Freeport." The main commercial fishing

busines s in Point Lo okou t is family-run and co nsists of a wholes ale fish m arket, re tail fish ma rket,

clam bar and restaura nt. The re stauran t was sta rted in part b ecaus e a deve loper wa s going to

build residential units right out to the waterfront on the land next to the business' dock. The

restaurant opened M ay 1, 1999. Not long ago there was a boatyard acros s the street where there

are now only parking lots and private homes. The clam bar is open from May 1-April 15. The

busines s has fre ezer spa ce for 15 -20,000 lb. of produ ct.

According to one informant there, the business runs two of its own boats while other

owner/ operators sell exclusively to it. Each boat has four crew members and multi-species

permits. The business also buys from five local gillnetters "every now and then." The informant

added that the "boats do better than the docks". The business got its boats through buying from

other fleets when others were getting out of the business. He said there are still a handful of

vessels from these fleets lying idle in the area. The business has a network of over 100 local

restaura nts that it who lesales to; th e rest of its w holesale produc t goes to F ulton's Fish Mark et.

Between the four phases of the business they employ 30-35 people at any one time, 10 of those

on the fish dock. A ll the dock 's crew a nd em ployees live w ithin a coup le of m iles of the do ck.

In June they we re fishing p rimarily for Loligo squid (who lesa ling m ostly to a fish hous e in

Newark, NJ). They were going out about nine miles for the squid, but they sometimes go out as

far as 100 miles when they drag. One boat is out on Georges Bank dragging for groundfish. The

gillnetters bring bluefish, s ea trout an d me nhade n to the bu siness . Accord ing to the info rma nt,

there a re a ha ndful o f indep ende nts in F reepo rt that se ll off the b ack o f their bo ats (bu t he co uldn't

say what size or how many).

Our local informant said they used to have fourteen trawlers tied up in Pt. Lookout and

that they used to do a lot of out-of-state business. Now all their sales are local. However, another

observ er repor ts that out-o f-state bo ats still land ther e (winter 2 000).

He said the relationship with the comm unity is good there has been no pressure to be off

the docks up to this point. He added that he "pounds the people with pro-commercial fishing

propaganda." The front of the restaurant menu pays tribute to commercial fishers. However, he

thinks tha t the press ure in the s tate, including pressu re from those tha t regulate th e industry, is to

get all com mer cial fishers off the wa terfront.

Point Lookout used to have a seafood festival that was run by the county and the town of

Hemp stead. This particular business was not involved. The festival ceased o peration last year.

There is also a surf clam processing plant on the same road, which has been in the

sea food busin ess since the beginn ing of this centu ry. It han dles prim arily su rf clams caug ht in

New York state waters as well as other shellfish. Several surf clam boats also work out of

Freep ort.

11

Freepo rt

The re are three fish d ock s on W oodcleft R d., the only co mm ercia l fishin g are a in

Free port. One dock has a sm all reta il shop ; only on e boa t work s from th e doc k. T he worke rs in

the retail market were Hispanic (3 workers that day), and there were numerous advertising signs

in Spanish. Anothe r of the fish hous es ha d thre e boa ts on the dock . Our ma in info rmant in

Freep ort was a fisherm an who se boa t was tied u p at the third d ock, w hich also has a re stauran t.

He said his father has been fishing for 35 years and has been a central figure in defending the

comm ercial fishing commu nity in the area. He said the fishermen wanted to build a cooperative

dock "like down there in Montauk," but the city wouldn't let them. He said his father then fought

the city to prevent them from putting condos on the riverfront and was partially successful. He

said he a nd his fath er are "m aking e nough to get by."

The informant sells mostly to Fulton Fish Market "because they give him high dollar." He

used to sell a lot of his catch to the main fish house in Pt. Lookout, and still does when he has

high volum e, "beca use [that b usiness ] has a lot of outlets."

He said "we'll be out of here in the next five years." He thinks they are developing the

area for tourists and p leasure b oate rs, sq ueezing th e com me rcial fis hers off the doc ks. A s it is

there are only three bo ats (65' plu s trawlers ) that go ou t of this port fu ll-time. He men tioned tha t a

reporter from The New York Times com es down every so often to do stories on the commercial

fishing in tha t area an d has b een fair to "o ur side of the story."

He said the town is trying to get rid of one local fishing business. He said the freezers and

the commercial operations in general are perceived as an eyesore to the way they want the

wate rfron t to de velop . In Ju ne, m ajor u pgra des were being ma de to the ro ad that ran direc tly in

front of the commercial operations, including new sidewalks that, according to the informant, took

away their p arking. H e said: "T hey're pus hing us o ut. They're d efinitely trying to pus h us ou t."

He's worried about the changes that will be brought on by the new mayor. He expressed a lot of

anxiety abo ut the unc ertainty of their o ptions for the future of com mer cial fishing in F reeport.

The city once sponsored a Seafood Festival but it was stopped a year ago. He agreed

with the city that it should rather be sponsored by the businesses on the waterfront, since they

benefitted alm ost exclusively f rom the fe stival.

Fisheries Profile, Nassau County

Field Observations and Interviews, Oceanside, NY, July 1999

A surf clam boat owner based in Atlantic City, NJ, docks 6 boats of his fleet in Oceanside,

NY. They fish for surf clams in New York State waters. Four of these boats were docked in an

indus trial wa terfro nt are a of O ceanside calle d "O il City" (n o m ystery in that n am e the p lace is

filled with oil tanks as well as lots of scrap metal yards). No one on the property was willing to be

interviewed.

A young man at a nearby recreational marina said he thought there is one fisherman who

gill nets for blues, bunker and weakfish out of Oceanside as well as a commercial crabber. He

also pointed out that there had been a large shark tournament locally the past weekend, during

which a record number of sharks had been caught (the tournament was sponsored by the

Freeport Hudson Anglers, and this year's was the 27th

annual).

12

Fisheries Profile: Other N assau Co unty

Other Nassau County landings came to about 595,000 pounds, worth about 4 million

dollars, in 1998. Over 93% of the landings were of hard clams (quahogs), soft clams, and

oysters, taken in the rich "Oyster Bays" of this county. Gill nets, handlines, and lobster pots were

also used for striped bass and other species.

Suffo lk Cou nty Pro file (includes the fishing p orts of M ontauk , Green port, Orie nt/Orient P oint,

Shelter Isla nd, Fishe rs Island, S outhold, C ochog ue, Ma ttituck, Th ree Mile H arbor, Am agans ett,

and Shinnecock/Hampton Bays)

Suffolk County is the eastern half of Long Island and encompasses the major fishing ports:

Hampton Bays/Shinnecock, Montauk, and Greenport, as well as numerous smaller ports including

Mattituck, Amagansett, and several others that were visited during field work. The fisheries of

Suffolk and Nassau counties are highly diverse and also highly dispersed, such that much of what

is landed is record ed as "o ther" rathe r than as signed to a spec ific place (this is also don e to

protect anonymity. Although SuffolkCounty is being rapidly developed, it remains an important

agricultural county, the largest in New York State in dollar terms.

Population

According to the 1990 Census, the total population in Suffolk County was 1,321,864. Females

slightly outnumbered males, and 3.7% of the population were classified as rural. This included

the 2,070 people who lived in Greenport Village, one of the two fisheries-related places for which

independent census data are available. The other is Montauk, not classified as rural. Of the

County rural population, less than 1% lived on farms, reflecting the decline of agriculture and the

suburbanization and gentrification of the perimeter of the New York-New Jersey metropolitan

area.

Racial and Ethnic Composition

In Suffolk County in 1990, 90% of the population was white and 6.6% of Hispanic Origin. 6.3% of

the population was black, while small num bers of Am erican Indian and Asian groups we re

represented. Of the population, 92.1% were native born, 87.9% from the State of New York. The

ancestries most reported for the County were Italian (382,394 people), Irish (329,226 people), and

German (302,874 people). In Greenport Village the most reported ancestries were Italian;

German; and English; and, in Montauk the most reported ancestries were Irish, German, and

Italian.

Age Structure

According to the 1990 Census of Suffolk County, the 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest

at 32.9%. 24.7% of the population were under 18 years of age and 10.7% were 65 years of age

or older.

Household Composition

In Suffolk County there were 424,719 total households, 80.2% were occupied by families. Of the

family households, 82.8% contained married couples and 13.0% were headed by females. 16.0%

of the households were occupied by householders living alone.

13

Of the 424,719 occupied housing units in the county, 80.1% were owner occupied and 19.9%

were renter occupied. Median value of owner occupied units was $165,900 and median rent was

$696. Of the 56,598 vacant houses, 35,953 were used for seasonal, recreational, or occasional

use . Of th e 56,598 vaca nt housing unit s in the cou nty, 2,7 55 were in Mon tauk and 2 70 in

Greenport Village. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was

7.0%.

Educational Trends

Of the 855,043 persons 25 years and older in Suffolk County, 82.2% held a high school diploma

or higher and 23.0% held a bachelor's degree or higher. The proportions were similar for

Greenport Village and Montauk.

Income

According to the 1989 Census for Suffolk County, per capita income was $18,481 and median

household income was $49,128. Of the 1,292,665 people for whom poverty status was

determined, 4.7% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 1 ,033,464 person s 16 years and olde r in Suffolk Coun ty, 67.7% w ere in the lab or force . Of

those in th e labor for ce, 99.9% were in the civilian labor for ce, of wh ich 4.8% were un emp loyed.

Unem ployment was higher in Montau k, 7.2%, and Gree nport Village, 5.4%, than for the entire

Suff olk C oun ty. More rec ent unem ploym ent fig ures for the m etrop olitan area , including S uffo lk

and Nassau counties, were 3.9% in 1997 and 3.2% in 1998. Overall, unemployment is steady for

1997 a nd 199 8 in this area .

Employment Industries

Agric ulture , fore stry an d fish eries em ployed 1.4% of wo rker s 16 ye ars o f age or old er in S uffo lk

County. In 1990 there were 755 employed in the fisheries. In Greenport Village and Montauk

3.9% and 8.3%, respectively, were employed in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries

sectors. For the Suffolk County administrative support occupations, including clerical was the

largest sector, at 17.9%, followed by retail at 16.0%. The next largest industries were professional

specialty occupations; executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; sales; precision

production, craft, and repair occupations; and educational services.

Racial and Gende r Composition of the Fishing Industry

In 1990 there were 101 white male captains or officers of fishing vessels. There were also 654

males, 650 were white and 4 were black, who engaged in fishing as an occupation.

14

Fisheries Profile, Greenport and Mattituck, N.Y.

Although Greenport and Mattituck are very dissimilar ports, we combine landings

inform ation from them to protect c onfiden tiality.

Otte r traw l landin gs ar e by fa r the m ost im porta nt, over 95 %, and the clas sic M id-Atla ntic

complement of species is found, led by silver hake and loligo squid, but including butterfish,

summer and winter flounder, scup, striped bass, angler, and other species. There is also pound-

net fishing, haul-seining, gill-netting, handlining, pelagic longlining, lobster and conch pot fishing,

and raking for clams and dredging for bay scallops. Tables NY-GP1, 2 provide weighout data for

Greenport combined with nearby Mattituck.

Over 90% of the weighout landings attributed to Mattituck came from otter trawl fishing,

and the full complement of Mid-Atlantic species were major landings (=>2% value in 1998:

bluefish (25%), butterfish (12%), summer flounder (14.5%), scup (4.4%), dogfish 3.1%), lobster

and striped bass were also significant, amo ng the 37 species landed. To tal landings in 1998 were

less than 275,000 pounds. But recall that "Other New York" includes lobster and other landings

which pr obably ca me fr om p laces like Mattituck .

Table NY-GP1: Landings by Gear Type, Mattituck and Greenport, NY, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS % VALUE %

Comm on seine, haul seine

Gill net, sink

Handline

Long line, p elagic

Pots + traps, conch

Pound net, fish

Trawl, otter, bottom, fish

0.0% 0.0%

1.5% 1.4%

1.1% 2.9%

0.0% 0.1%

0.0% 0.0%

1.8% 3.0%

95.6% 92.5%

Total landings, rounded 1998: 7,831,400 lbs

Total value, rounded 1998: $4,140,500 dollars

Note: Not including "Other New York" landings; here as elsewhere "0.0%" means more than 0 but

less than 0.05%

15

Table NY-GP2: Landings by Major Species, Mattituck and Greenport, NY, 1998

MAJOR SPEC IES >2% LBS % VALUE %

Bluefish 4.2% 3.1%

Butterfish 1.6% 1.9%

Flounder, summer 1.1% 5.1%

Flounder, winter 2.9% 1.2%

Hake, Red 2.3% 1.5%

Hake, silver 63.3% 46.1%

Scup 0.8% 2.6%

Squid (loligo) 21.6% 27.2%

Bass, striped 0.6% 3.0%

Number of species: 62

Other species of MAFMC interest by percentage value 1998: Atlantic Mackerel (0.1), Black Sea

Bass (0.9), dogfish, other (0.1), Dogfish, Smoo th (0.0), Tilefish (0.3), and Illex Squid (0.0).

Field Observations and Interviews, Greenport and Mattituck, NY

Greenport, NY

Green port is the larg est fishing center o n the nor th fork o f Long Is land. On e inform ant,

active in regional fisheries management, told us there are 5 large offshore vessels, one medium-

sized drag ger, two s mall 40 ' dragge rs, 3 trap ve ssels (w ith pound nets), pro bably 4 lobs terme n, 4

or 5 people who do con ch potting, 4 or 5 gill netters and 25 or so baymen. People from Greenport

also own and fish with vessels in other ports. Two sea scallopers owned by a company in Cape

May, NJ, u se G reen port's dock s. Th ere is a lot of over lap of ten th e lobs term en, conchers , gill

netters, etc., are the same people, adapting to the seasons and the regulations. Regulations and

decline in some species have made a difference. Despite local support, commercial fishing is not

nearly as big in Greenport as it was 10 or 20 years ago, he said. Opportunities exist for work at

other trades in the region, including a local shipyard, as well as machinist, welding, electrician and

similar jobs.

The person we interviewed has been fishing out of Greenport for 27 years and owns 3

boats: a 60' stern dragger and 2 smaller skiffs for bay fishing. He has one deckhand. In the

sum mer he goes for fin fish, an d in the winte r he cha nges o ver to being a baym an who harves ts

clams and scallops. He also grows oysters. "I do a little bit of everything. You have to, because of

the re gulat ions ." Like ma ny others, h e off loads at severa l differ ent p laces. He usua lly unloa ds his

fish at a seafood dock in Greenport, but sells to a business in Cutchogue. Sometimes he'll unload

in Montauk or Stonington, CT, if he is out that way. He said that most of his catches end up at

Fulton Fish Market. His dragger is docked behind a local marine supply store which has become,

in his term s, a "ship's c handler y for tourists."

In June, the dragger fisherman we talked with was mainly fishing small mesh for squid,

though he said he picks up a lot of other species along the way weakfish, bluefish, sea bass,

fluke, butterfish, lobster and some whiting. "In eastern Long Island, mixed trawl is what we've

16

always done." Like other mixed-trawl fishermen of the Mid-Atlantic region, he is concerned that

regulations are mostly written for single species, which doesn't mirror the reality of fishing "The

fish d on't k now that. T hey all s wim toge ther. " The re is a certa in am oun t of ea ch spec ies that is

allowable catch in mixed trawl, but this informant said the limits are too low. One consequence of

the myriad of regulations and state-by-state quotas for some species is that fishing operations,

especia lly drag gers , are p ress ured to fish in diffe rent w aters and o ffload in dif ferent po rts: "It a ll

depends on what the government allows us to keep it forces us to move around." He said that

draggers are the ones that are usually saddled with the most onerous regulations "because we

are con sidered the bigge st and ug liest of vess els and b ecaus e of our b y-catch."

The Village of Greenport is said to be "fisherman friendly," generally more supportive of

the fishing industry than other communities. There are two municipal docks for commercial fishing

one (built 10 to 12 years ago) for the large ocean-going boats and the other for the baymen. Our

informant told the story of a local fish plant winning out over the complaints of residents of a

nearby condominium development several years ago. The condo residents complained about

noise, sm ells, e tc., bu t the villa ge bo ard u phe ld the plant 's righ t to op erate as it sa w fit be cause it

had been there for 100 years while the condominiums had just been built. The board said that the

plant mu st co mp ly with health regu lations (so me clean -up w as m andated ), but t hat it c ould

operate in the middle of the night if it had to (often in order to get the fish to Kennedy Airport so

that it could be delivered fresh overseas). The board had previously changed zoning so that no

new condominiums could be built in the commercial waterfront district (a second development

already existed and was allowed to stay). In general, the village is doing a lot to redevelop the

waterfront, replacing "eyesores" such as a restaurant that had burned and a marina that was

rotting away with a park. Greenport's waterfront revitalization program, which is the first in the

state, includ es a clau se prote cting the c omm ercial doc ks.

A tele phone intervie w with a villag e off icial re veale d tha t each of th e com me rcial d ock s is

zoned "W aterfron t Com mer cial." This allow s "mo st uses related to c omm ercial fishing , often to

the exclusion of other uses." In the early 1990s the village removed condomium use from the

definition of Waterfront Commercial. They have also restricted the growth of restaurants and

hotels on the waterfront. They have made it difficult to put anything residential in the Waterfront

Comm ercial zone and have even m ade it difficult for non marine related busines ses. There are

also a number of restrictions placed on the use of land in these areas by a Coastal Zone

Management Plan and a Waterfront Revitalization Plan. The municipal government and other

influe ntial com mu nity m em bers have an ex pres sed agen da of ma intain ing a w orkin g wa terfro nt in

Gre enport. It is even a par t of the Cha mb er of Com me rce's prom otional m ateria ls, and it fits in

with the broader characterization of this town as a "working town" rather than one dependent on

tourism for development as more typical on the south fork of Long Island. Offered as proof of

their commitment to a working waterfront community is the fact that a number of marine related

businesses are there, including a vessel equipment and repair firm, a marine supply, and a

sailmaking company. The mayor and trustees of the village were described as wanting to see the

village continue in this direction.

The re are a cou ple of char ter an d par ty boa ts in G reen port, but th ey we re no t docked in

town during the research visit. There are two fishing related companies in one building (127

Sterling St.) near the condominiums on Sterling Street. A local fisherman said that fluke are being

raised at one and that the other freezes whiting and sends it overseas.

One of the com mercial docks/fish hous es is owned and run by a hus band and wife. There

is also a retail fish market attached to it. The business runs two trawlers, one of which was

unloading mostly groundfish, particularly flounder, during the research visit. The informant here

said that the retail market has become an important part of the town establishment and that they

bought it to "capitalize on our reputation" (they had been very politically active on behalf of the

commercial fishing industry). She said they diversified so as not to be dependent on the boats for

17

their retirement. They had another vessel sink not too long ago. This fish house employs four

regular employees, one regular at the dock and three or more part- timers/seasonal help.

The inform ant said that she, he r hus band and mo st of th e other fisherm en ar e ext rem ely

frustrated because of the heavy regulations and the way they are left out of the management

proc ess . She said t hat m anagem ent o f the in dus try is "ou t of co ntrol." Her m ajor c om plaint at this

point is th at they lim it spec ies for th e hea lth of the stock s, but w hen th e stoc ks re turn, "they don 't

give anything back."

She mostly buys from bay draggers and hook and liners. She said she buys from 6

fishtr appers, 3 bay dr aggers (under 60 '), and othe r boa ts on a reg ular b asis . The y work mo stly

out of her dock. There used to be a large scalloping fleet until scallop regulations from the New

Englan d Fishe ry Mana gem ent Cou ncil in effec t shut it down .

The two owners used to be actively involved in a number of fisheries associations, but no

longer. They are "burnt out" on the politics game. The informant used to be on a fisheries

ma nagem ent adviso ry boa rd. Her hu sband ha s bee n fish ing sin ce he was 12. Sh e said that th eir

political activism was squelched by the regulation of tuna. She said this was a case where they

played by the rules and still got shut completely out of the fishery. She went on to challenge the

ration ale of the m anagem ent by point ing to lack of atte ntion to the recreational ca tch. S he sa id

(as did oth ers interview ed) that the recreatio nal boats are over fishing fluk e(sum mer flounder ).

She said that since there is only one quota system for both commercial and recreational fishers,

it's ridiculous to even try to make money off fluke as a commercial fisher. Fluke used to be 75%

of the ir inco me . But fis hers can' t surv ive on the current 70 lb. trip lim it. She think s the state shou ld

have protected those who were already in the fishery rather than open it up to everyone. She

believes th at the state fisheries a gency's d ata are h ighly inaccur ate, and th at they use NMF S data

instead of collecting their own. She said they put pressure on the docks, so doc k operators have

essentia lly beco me enfo rcem ent agen ts. Ac cord ing to her, th is has been good in one sens e: it

has virtually eliminated recreational fishers from selling their catch in her area. But none of the

recreational fishers were prevented from buying commercial licenses.

They sell most of their product locally, through the fish market. The rest is sent most often

to Fulton Fish Market on consignment. They provide their own ice and cartons and pay for the

shipping. She mentioned she had heard that Fulton Fish Market may be have competition for the

land they're on in the near future and that one option was for it to move to NJ. She said if it moves

to NJ, "the whole E ast End [of Long Island] will die."

She be lieves that the ir position at the dock is safe be cause the com mun ity supports them .

She said that Greenport's waterfront revitalization program, which is the first in the state, includes

a clause protecting the com mer cial dock s.

When asked about the presence of female fishers, she said that women shouldn't be on

the boats for safety reasons. When probed, she also said that women do not go out on the high

seas bec ause the re are rarely s epa rate q uarte rs fo r them . She had a prob lem once with a fem ale

researcher who wanted to go out with the men by herself. She thought there might be problems.

Those who sell fish to their market are well diversified. They clam, pound-net, trap,

gillnet, drag and go offshore. The business' boats change gear for different levels of trawling

(dragging, mid and upper water trawling). She said that the bluefish came in early this year and

that p orgie s we re larg er tha n they were last year. La st yea r they h ad blo wfish and b unk er "in

droves;" this year they have none of either. The lobstermen tell her that they are having problems

with th eir ba it in par t because the seal p opu lation has in crea sed and is eating it all. A lso, th eir

"spring" run of lobster happened in January this year.

18

Besides the places already mentioned, some commercial boats dock at a fourth location

in Greenport (the presence of a d eep sea trawler was recorde d at the time of the research visit.).

Mattituck Inlet

A lobsterm an at Matt ituck Cree k off Eas t Mill Road said t hat th ere a re 17 full-tim e

commercial lobstermen working out of this creek. They run boats averaging 35-45'. Most lobster

on Long Island Sound. They also do some handlining and gillnetting. There are 3 draggers that

also work out of the inlet. A seafood house across the creek has its own dock and advertises a

lobster business.

Another marina closer to the mouth of the inlet is a combination commercial and

recreational dock with few amenities. This is reportedly the only other place where any

com me rcial fis hers dock ed. W e saw one t rawle r and five boats used for lob sterin g and gill-

netting. At one time Mattituck had much more fishing acvtivity, particularly before 1992, when

dragging was sharply cut back by closures of many areas such as western Long Island Sound

and zones along the western shore of Long Island and Peconic. These closures affected many

places besides Mattituck, and they forced some small dragger operations to move to the open

ocean and other fisheries although they may not be set up for them.

Fisheries Profile: "Other Suffolk" and Amagansett, NY

The NMFS data are collected for the port of Amagansett and well as unspecified "Other

Suffolk" fishing. "Other Suffolk" probably includes landings from the fishermen at Orient/Orient

Poin t, She lter an d Fis her Is lands , Sou thold , Cutc hogue, and m any other s ma ller pla ces in Suf folk

Cou nty on both the north a nd the sou th for ks o f eas tern L ong Island inclu ding M oun t Sina i,

mentioned below. We have combined it with information with Amagansett in the discussion below

because of the relatively small size of landings in Amagansett, but we will briefly describe

Amagansett in terms of its fisheries. We will discuss the larger south fork ports of Montauk and

Hamp ton Bays/Shinnecock se parately later in the chapter.

Bay clamming (for hard clams, or quahogs) is the major fishery, representing over 71% of

the area's value in 1998. Lobstering is next, 14% of the value. Other imp ortant shellfisheries are

for oysters , soft clam s, ho rses hoe crab s, blue cra bs, and gr een crab s. Ha rves ting bay scallops is

an imp ortant fishe ry for all east en d ports, bu t landings v ary widely from one year to the next.

There is tremen dous diversity in gears used, bespeaking the m ixed bay, sound, and ocean nature

of these fisheries. They include handlines, longlines, harpoons, seines, otter trawls, gillnets,

pound nets, pots for fish, eels, conch, crabs, and lobster, fyke-nets, cast nets, diving gear, crab

and oyste r dredge s, shove ls, rakes , tongs, pa tent tongs , and "by han d".

Mo unt Sin ai

Mount Sinai is a small lobstering port within the municipality of Brookhaven. It is on the

northern side of Long Island, near Port Jefferson on Long Island Sound, in an area known as

Cedar Beach. It is one of the numerous ports with access to the lobster fishing grounds of Long

Island Sound, and landings data are mostly incorporated in NMFS' "Other New York" code. One

state official had told us that this port is as big as some of the lobster ports in Maine. On a Friday

afternoon in the summer of 1999, there were 4 lobster boats moored in a harbor dominated by

several large recreational marinas. An elderly man who works at the municipal parking lot

(Brookhaven/M ount Sinai) said there are 17 lobster boats in all in the harbor. He said there are

two people owning 4 boats apiece who sell their catches at a fishing station down the road. The

19

other lobstermen apparently sell their catches individually. He said these lobstermen had been

working out of the harbor for 20 or 30 years and that they are all now middle-aged. He said there

also use d to be a d ragger th at work ed out of Moun t Sinai but tha t the owne r had sinc e gone into

clamm ing. He also said Port Jefferson had so me lobster boats and possibly one dragger. There

is also an important soft clam fishery in Mount Sinai harbor.

Our informant pointed out that this stretch of Long Island Sound shoreline (Cedar Beach)

is a big recreational operation, with 400 slips, 600 moorings and a beach. The non-resident

mo oring fee is a who pping $55/day, but it on ly cost s the lobsterm en $1 10/s eason fo r their

moorings.

Orient/Orient Point

We visited both Orient Harbor and Orient Point, at the very tip of the north fork. At the

east side of Orient Harbor a man at a recreational marina said there is one fisherman who sets up

fish traps around the harbor and a lobsterman who docks his boat on a private pier nearby. Orient

Poin t seeme d to be the bigge r of the two sites . One of the Gre enport inf orm ants had s aid there is

a marina there with about 10 charter boats as well as 6 lobstermen, some handliners and some

gillnet ters. Mos t of the boat s we re ou t durin g the rese arch visit, bu t a m an at the m arina there said

that a bou t 12 com me rcial fis herm en work o ut of O rient P oint, m ostly lobste rmen, and a litt le

handlining is don e. He said t hat a ll of the m live with in 10 m iles of the P oint. S om eone else in

Orient s aid he tho ught ther e was s ome gillnetting going on too.

Shelter Island and Fishers Island

One of the Greenport informants said that there are men who gill net, conch and lobster

on Shelte r Islan d and that th ey are mo stly bayme n. He me ntioned on e vete ran f ishe rman in

particular, who fishes alone on a 40' dragger and who could tell us about the activity on the island.

W e went over to the island and found from talking to a woman and a hardware and bait store

near the ferry dock about the major fishing family on the island and about other well known

fishermen. She said that most of the local fishermen work out of town dock on Congdons Creek,

which flows into Coecles Harbor on the eastern side of the island. Researchers went there and

saw a few boats but no fishermen. There is also a town dock at Shelter Island Heights where a

few boats tie up. We were also told that there are about 12 lobstermen at Fishers Island, which

we did not visit. There are also two large shellfish aquaculture facilities at Fishers Island.

20

Southold

Southold is on the north fork, southwest of Greenport and northeast of Cutchogue and

Mattituck . W e interviewe d a fisher man who ow ns and operate s a sea food m arket at a

recreational marina at the east end of town. He's been fishing since 1974 and has had the market

for 9 or 10 years. He said he's the only fisherman with a boat in Southold (a 32-footer), and he

dock s it at the m arina as w ell. He sells h is own fish at the m arket, w hich he c atches in pound nets

or traps as they are often referred to here. (He has photos on the wall of pound nets being pulled

up with large quantities of fish, but admitted these were taken on the really good days.) He also

sells fish, cla ms a nd eels th at other loc al fisherm en bring in.

He said there are about 35 to 40 mostly inshore fishermen in the Southold area (including

Greenport), who keep their boats in many different places in the creeks and bays. Most of them

are solo operators and the boats are the size of his or smaller. They do a lot of hard clamming

(with r ake s) an d con ching and also g et some bluef ish an d weakf ish. H e said there is no s quid

now inshore. Some of the lobstermen in Mattituck and Orient Point sell to him. He also told us that

a local fisherman transplants clams he takes "probably from under the Verrazano Bridge"

(possibly from New York State's hard clam relay program, allowing the transplant of clams from

moderately polluted waters in Raritan Bay, near Staten Island, to clean waters elsewhere in New

York).

Few poun d-ne t fishe rmen ar e left m aybe only 3 in Sou thold . Our resp ondent puts h is

own pound-nets into about 25' of water. He had 7 pound nets out at the time of the interview (he

used to have m ore) . His n ephew and an othe r ma n help him . He th inks there are tw o big

adva ntag es to this typ e of fis hing "I t's on e of th e clea nes t fishe ries th ere is beca use it does n't kill

the fish," and "I can go home and sleep at night." He also scallops starting in October. He has 2

small boats besides the 32-footer and a barge. He also hand-lines for striped bass, though the

limit in NY State is 104 fish per boat. He catches fish from early April to Thanksgiving and bay

sca llops a nd cla ms from Octobe r to Ap ril. Bes ides that, h e doe s some oyste r farm ing too. His

cages are just outside the harbor. He said there's been some pirating, but it hasn't been that bad.

He said he doesn't belong to any commercial fishing organizations because "they don't do

any good. Fishermen fight amongst themselves and the state loves it." Asked about his feelings

rega rding regu lations, the inform ant said, "I lo ok a t it as M othe r Nat ure, a nd M othe r Nat ure is

doing just fin e. It's th e reg ulations that are killing us. T here are s o m any flu ke n ow th at you could

walk on them ."

The ma rket is ope n year roun d and the inf orm ant's wife runs it. The y retail a nd wholes ale

clams, mussels and oysters (most of the wholesale product goes to Fulton Fish Market) and just

retail o ther s pec ies su ch as porg ies, b lowfis h and bluef ish. H e said that th e m arke t ma kes it

possible for him to stay afloat financially even though he had to put $13,000 into the business

initially "you have to dive rsify. If I didn' t open the store , I wou ld not be in b usiness now ." He s aid

that none of the other local fishermen are full-time except ones who run big draggers. When they

are not o n the wa ter, the fishe rme n cut gra ss, paint h ouses and do a ny num ber of oth er things to

keep going. "They've taken so much away," he said. Before opening the market, he was a welder

on the side.

He s aid he 's fea rful of the im pac t that n ew re gulat ions on fis h m arke ts co uld ha ve on his

business. He was mostly speaking about new federal regulations of "Hazardous Analysis and

Critical Control" (HACCP) that will soon regulate clam wholesalers, but he thinks these will govern

retail sales a s well in a few years.

He said that he feels pressure being the only commercial fisherman in a marina full of

pleas ure b oats . He repo rted th at the lease s for slips a re ve ry high but th at he 's been ab le to ho ld

21

off any inclination the owner might have to raise his rent and effectively push him out because he

trades h is service s with his ba rge to m aintain the flo ats for the recreatio nal boats .

Cutchogue

The re is o ne lar ge fis h hou se he re with a reta il ma rket attac hed . No f ish ar e actually

landed in Cutchogue; they are trucked in from other local ports. The fish house also buys fish

from the F ulton ma rket in Ne w Yor k Cit y and im ports fish a nd sh ellfish . It runs a m ajor w holes ale

distribution business supplying many restaurants and fish markets on Long Island.

According to one of the managers, the business has diversified significantly in the past

decad e. Local o yster beds were de stroyed 5 to 6 years ag o by the oyste r diseas e know n as M SX.

Now a more diversified business is booming and the owners are ready to expand. The informant

said he wishes they had built a retail market at least twice the size of their current operatio (which

is itself much larger than it was 15 years ago). He said they could easily be doing twice the local

retail business they are doing now. They have plans for expanding the retail market in the near

future, adding a high dollar "prepared product" wing.

They run 10,000 lb. of flatfish a week through their business. They have 20 trucks that

they use to transport their product. This is essentially a seafood wholesale distributor. They have

a 25,000 -gallon live ho lding system for lobster . The info rma nt said the lobsterm en that se ll to

them are m aking "b ig mon ey" but that it is "like the old wild wes t out there; you don't m ess with

someone else's pots!"

They employ 35 full-time people. They have 5 or 6 Guatemalans as regular workers who

live in the area. He said they were first hired because they were good cutters, but they continued

as good workers in general. He named a number of baymen (3) and lobstermen (4) in the area,

only a few o f whom are full-tim e.

Amagansett and Three Mile Harbor

NMFS w eigho ut da ta fro m "A ma gansett" s how the p rofiles of th ree tr aditional, sma ll-

scale fisheries of the South Fork of eastern Long Island. But first, to clarify, the town of

Amagansett has no dock facilities and thus is not a "port" in the traditional sense. Fish and

shellfish are trucked to consignment houses in Amagansett from various locations in the area,

including but not restricted to Three Mile Harbor, which is in the town of Springs. (Most fish

landed here are sent to Fulton Fish Market). Both Amagansett and Springs are part of the

townsh ip of Eas t Ham pton.

Beach seines, pound-nets, and handlining were the major gear types identified for

Amagansett weighout data in 1998. Beach seines are used for bluefish, eels, Atlantic silverside

and other species, totalling 6% of the 1998 value. The greatest value (36% in 1998) came from

pound-nets or fish weirs. In 1998 41 species were landed in these fish weirs. The landings of

pound-nets provide an sample of the biodiversity of the inshore waters as well as the diversity of

preferences in local and metropolitan markets. The species included: Bluefish (54%), summer

flounder (16%), Loligo squid (6.5%), weakfish (6%), carp (4%), striped bass (3%), scup (2%) and

white perch (1.6%). Less than 1% of the poundage were: winter flounder, butterfish, Spanish

ma cke rel, tau tog, lo bste r, blac k se a bas s, Atla ntic s ilvers ide, skate s, dogfish , bon ito, Atla ntic

mackerel, smooth dogfish, crevalle, American shad, albacore tuna, northern puffer, silver hake,

sea robins, king mackerel, herring, conger eel, king whiting, oyster toadfish, conchs, periwinkles,

menhad en, cunner, crab, tuna (general), blue runner, black drum , triggerfish, angler.

Ano ther tr aditional fis hery, h and lining, is abo ut the sam e in va lue as poun d-ne ts in

Amagansett (34.5%). It is used primarily for scup, striped bass, and bluefish, but 28 other species

22

were also caught handlining, ranging from small amounts of cod, butterfish, eels, king, Spanish

and Atlantic mackerel, and white perch, to larger amounts of summer flounder and dogfish. One

of the wholesalers in Amagansett does a significant business in live fish.

Field Observations and Interviews, Three Mile Harbor, July 1999

Three Mile Har bor is one of the sm all ports from which pe ople often truck the ir catches to

buyers elsewhere, including Amagansett. Fishermen who use Three Mile Harbor may also use

the port of Montauk for ice and offloading their catches w hen fishing east. W e saw eight draggers

and lobs ter boats near the head of the harb or, on the e ast side, o n the eve ning we w ere there .

W e spok e exten sively to one lob sterm an and briefly to seve ral others .

The principal interviewee spoke at length about his operations and what he knew of

others out of Three Mile Harbor. He has been lobstering for 18 years, the last 11 out of Three

Mile Harbor. Before that, he was a part-timer working out of a small, private inlet. He said that

when he first started, the people who already had pots out in an area kn own as The R ace off

Fisher's Island would cut his traps. He gradually worked his way into the fishery by getting to the

periphery. He says that he now has the prime spots in The Race for 100 of his pots, and that now

he w ill go an d cut anybo dy's tra ps who ge t in his w ay. "It's r eally an adve nture out th ere," he sa id

with a grim smile.

He lobs ters 1,40 0 pots w ith two boa ts and s ays that he is the sm allest oper ation out the re.

Mos t of the lobsterm en ha ve up ward s of 2 ,000 pots in the w ater. He s aid they are cons tantly

pressured from a local state fisheries enforcement agent, who allegedly focuses on them rather

than dealing with the problem they face of lobstermen coming down from Connecticut. Verifying

our impression of the close ties between the fisheries of eastern Long Island and New England,

this informant also he is trying to get a tuna license so that he can work out of Glouces ter,

Massach usetts, this fall (a 10-hour sail from the South Fork).

Fisheries Profile, Montauk, NY

Monta uk, the larg est fishing port in Ne w York , is situated n ear the e astern tip o f the Sou th

Fork of Long Island. Otter-trawls and longlines are the principal gear-types, in terms of pounds

landed and value (Table NY-M1). Loligo squid and silver hake are the two most important fin-fish

caugh t in 1998, bu t tilefish also sta nd out, an d sword fish and tuna land ings are im portant a s well.

Montauk is the leading tilefish port in the U.S., but this fishery has declined greatly. For the past

two ye ars (1998-19 99) s om e of th e Mo ntau k-ba sed tilefish boat s hav e bee n unlo ading their

catc hes in Rh ode Island. No neth eless, tilefis h acc oun ted fo r 21% of the value of lan dings in this

port in 1998 (Table NY-M2). The number of species landed at Montauk is staggering: 90. The

methods used to harvest fish and shellfish are diverse, including pound nets or fish weirs, box

traps, haul seines, and spears, along with the more usual pots, lines, and trawl nets.

23

Table NY-M1: Landings by Gear Type, Montauk, NY, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS % VALUE %

Box trap 0.0% 0.0%

Comm on seine, haul seine 0.0% 0.0%

Gill net, sink 1.2% 1.3%

Handline, other 3.0% 6.6%

Longline, bottom 11.4% 20.9%

Lon gline, pelag ic 3.1% 8.7%

Pot/trap, lobster, insh nk 0.4% 1.3%

Pot/trap, lobster, offsh nk 0.1% 0.4%

Pots + traps, conch 0.0% 0.0%

Pots + traps, fish 0.1% 0.3%

Pound net, fish 0.6% 0.6%

Spears 0.0% 0.0%

Trawl, otter, bottom, fish 80.1% 59.9%

Total landings, rounded 1998: 12,035,700 lbs

Total value, rounded 12,108,800 dollars; 0.0% = <0.06 % rounded

24

Table NY-M2: Landings by Major Species, Montauk, NY, 1998

MAJOR SPEC IES >2% LBS %

Bass, striped

Bluefish 2.1%

Butterfish 3.2%

Dogfish, nk 2.4%

Flounder, summer 2.8%

Flounder, winter 3.8%

Hake, red 3.2%

Hake, silver 31.2%

Scup 1.8%

Squid (loligo) 24.2%

Swordfish 1.0%

Tilefish 11.5%

Number of species: 90

VALUE %

5.2%

0.8%

2.0%

0.4%

6.9%

5.1%

1.1%

15.7%

3.6%

19.8%

3.4%

21.2%

Other species of MAFMC interest by percentage 1998 value: Atlantic Mackerel (0.3), Black Sea

Bass (1.3), Dogfish, NK (0.0), Sm ooth Dogfish (0.0), and Illex squid (0.0).

Field Observation and Interviews, Montauk, N.Y.

There are three main commercial fishing businesses in the Montauk area, which offload

fish which has been packed on the boats (except tilefish and tunas). The fish is sold on

consignment, mostly through the Fulton Fish Market in New York City. Another business also

operate s from these do cks, bu t it mostly retails a nd has a significan t restaura nt busine ss. It

doesn't buy much from the larger commercial vessels. Dock space is a problem here as

elsewhere in the region. There are two town docks, each with the capacity four or more boats;

one fishing business has a few dock spaces as well. Otherwise the waterfront is dominated by

sma ll marinas that are de dicated to recreatio nal fishing a nd other boats.

A spoke sm an fo r the f ish m arke t at the dock s sa id tha t the lobste rmen ar e rea lly the on ly

commercial fishers he buys from in the area. He said he doesn't have a market for whiting or

squid or for many of the other produc ts that the deep sea vessels catch. He b uys lobster,

swordfish, tuna, flounder and cod from those who can sell it to him. This business wholesales

mostly to restaurants in the area. Another informant from the market who used to fish

commercially said they import from all over the world.

One of our primary informants in Montauk had his boat tied up at one of the municipal

docks. The commercial vessels that use the municipal docks get a break from the town on the

dock fees. He is one of the co-owners of the largest local seafood fish houses. He believes that

this is the to p pro duc ing do ck in New York . Tho ugh it is kn own as a c ooperativ e, it is actua lly a

corporation with seven owners. There are ten boats that work out of this dock.

25

One of the captains immediately complained about the regulations. He said he can't keep

up with all the p aperwo rk. "I don't m ind the cu tback, b ut when will we get an y benefit?" he said.

He m ade an interesting c omm ent abou t those w ho regu late him . He said, "N MFS is a paras ite

that is killing its ho st." This tim e of year the com mer cial boats a re surviving on whiting a nd squ id.

One of the other captains said: "Thank goodness they don't catch squid and whiting on a rod and

reel!"

When asked if there has been pressure on the dock for its prime property, the manager of

one of the seafood businesses said they have to deal with some of the toughest zoning laws in the

state whenever they want to change or expand. But the town has worked with them when they

follow the rules. He said they can build on to their docks which they are in the process of doing,

but they have to go through a tremendous amount of red tape. They are limited in part by the

Wetlands Protection Act as the land adjacent to their property is protected land. But that

restriction also protects them from developers pressuring them for their waterfront property. "No

one can build community housing or condos in our area." He feels that they are safe from

pressures from the city. They own the land and are grandfathered into most zoning clauses that

would cause them problems.

The fish dock co-owner who talked with us said his wife runs the business for his two

boats. He has five daughters an d said he really doesn't want them fishing, not because they are

women, but because there is no real future in the business. He said that there had been three

women fishing in the area that he could think of including his wife and a longline fisher (see

below).

When asked about how many crew were employed in Montauk, he gave the following

breakdown: 3 longliners employ 8 per boat (double crew); he employs 10 on his two boats; the

two largest vessels (well over 90') each employ 10, and there are also 20 or 30 lobstermen out of

Montauk. Other observers report many more boats fishing from Montauk.

In contrast to what one of the other fisherman said, this informant claimed that most of the

commercial fishers in the area have "cleaned up their act". Very few are involved with alcohol or

drug ab use.

The fish market informant estimated 10 full-time lobstermen in Montauk and around 10 or

20 part-timers. W hen asked ab out any land use issues, he confirme d that town ordinances are

very strict, m aking it is ve ry difficult to build. T he city own s the doc ks adja cent to his busines s.

He sa id there is ab out two or three years of pape rwork th at needs to be com pleted if one wants to

build. His perspective on the commercial fishers is that they are doing rather well. He noted the

break the town gives them on dock fees. "Everyone pays taxes but they get the benefit." He also

said that because of their large operations, the packing house across the harbor owners of the

biggest local dock have developed significant leverage in their markets. "It's not a tradition

anym ore; it's big bu siness . W ith two full time crews, th ey fish arou nd the clo ck."

For th e fish ma rket , as d istinc t from the com me rcial d ock s, the busy s eason is f rom July

4th

into October. Our informant at the market said that the biggest dock won't have much

pressure for their land, even though the island on which it is built is a growing residential area. He

said the c omm ercial area there is bu ffered b y a few ke y properties .

Another local dock is a small "freight forwarder." The land it uses is rented from a man

who owns a lot of land in the area and also owns a lobster dock in the area and in Maine. He

confirmed that they are doing well for themselves. He said, however, that the volume of fish in the

area is declining dramatically, mostly due to the regulations. He also believes that the commercial

waterfront is disappearing in this area. He strongly feels the pressure from the recreational

interests and knows that if he can't keep his business viable, the recreational industry will take

26

over his lease. He said that the regulations hurt his dock by one million pounds in 1996-97 (the

last time he calculated the loss). He said he may need to move into the fish market business and

to servicing charter boats (i.e. selling fuel, oil and bait). Like others, he said that the bigger

com mer cial opera tions are d oing well. "It's the little gu ys that are b eing kn ocke d out."

The m ain recre ational fishe rme n's bar is c alled "Liars."

Tilefishing at Montauk

Our informant about tilefishing is business manager for 2 tilefishing boats that work out of

Montauk. She used to manage as many as four boats. She herself went longlining for tilefish on

her husband's boat for five years when they were working out of Florida. She stopped when she

began having children, but says she misses being out on the water with her husband. As

bus iness m anager, s he pr epa res g ang ions for the long line ge ar (us ing cir cle ho oks , a rela tively

new technique), orders supplies, arranges repairs and markets the fish. She also prepares

settle me nts and do es bo okk eep ing an d is inv olved in fish eries ma nagem ent. T he bo ats gene rally

go out for several days at a time, and she says she talks to the captains every day on the

sideband in her house to find out what they will need when they get into port. Timing is important

becau se the bo ats are d ouble-c rewed a nd do no t stay in the har bor for s ignificant pe riods of tim e.

The boats seek out tilefish at the edge of the continental shelf, around 100 125 miles

out, in an ar ea st retch ing fro m R hode Island to cent ral Ne w Je rsey. T he ba it used is m ack erel,

squid or eel. It is a 12-month fishery for her boats. (She said that winter always used to be the

best time to catch tilefish, but that the summer of 1998 was great, the prices were still up, and that

it's sometimes hard to predict how it will go from season to season.) She said that the fish that

are caught range in size from 2 lbs. to 25 or 30 lbs. (in the past they used to see some 50-

pounders). T he m edium and la rge f ish ar e wo rth the mo st usually the jum bos have such big

heads that the price per pound will be lower. Tilefish is the only species they fish for, but they do

catch some tuna in the process she said that what happens is that the pelagic tuna sometimes

grab onto the bait as the lines are being dropped to the floor of the ocean in order to catch tilefish,

which burrow into the bottom.

The two boats she m anages off-lo ad at one o f the h ouses in M onta uk o r at an othe r in

Narragansett, RI (where they often end up getting fuel or bait because of lower taxes). The docks

provide the trucks needed to ship their fish, though the boats pay for them. The boats she

manages almost always sell their fish to buyers at Fulton Fish Market, though she said that

sometimes the Canadians come directly to them. In the past, they tried to sell both fresh and

frozen tilefish to Japan, but the market preferred "pink" tilefish to the "golden" tilefish of these

waters. "It's mostly a Korean thing in the city [New York]" she said. She hasn't seen much

fluctuation in price in recent years: "In general, there's less fish, so the prices stay up." She thinks

the Fulton buyers are generally fair, at least the ones with whom she has been working.

She said that all the Montauk longliner owner/operators have worked together, been

friends, and lived near each other in Montauk for ab out 15 years. The two boats she m anages are

steel and as large as 82'; one of the two other Montauk boats is similar but the fourth is only about

55' and is made of fiberglass. She pointed out that whatever quota is set for the Montauk boats,

the owners "have every intention of working together to strategize about the fishing and to make

sure there's still fish year round. We're in it for the long haul." Each boat has a crew of 4, and she

says that double-crewing has made it so that "everyone has a life" the captains and crews know

ahead of time when they will be out and when they will be home. She says that with the bigger

metal boats weather is rarely a consideration anymore.

She said that all 8 crew members who are with her husband's boat have been working

with them for 10 to 15 years and that they all live between Montauk and East Hampton. As she put

27

it, "we have ten 1099s every year." On the other hand, she said that the other boat she manages

can have as many as 18 or 20 a year, and that crew continuity largely depends on whether or not

the boat is catching fish. She said that there is a problem finding trained crew members who

replace those who leave. As far as getting one's own boat goes, she said: "Because of all the

legisla tion, a young guy is n ot go ing to do it. H is dre am s are cut down right th ere. T he way it is

now, the first thing you've got to get a re all the perm its, if you can, an d then you get a boa t,

wherea s in the pa st the boa t was alwa ys the first thing you looke d for."

She says she loves living in Montauk and that the fishermen are generally respected by

the rest of the townspeople. She said that the fishermen are not generally seen as a bad crowd,

"even the drag gers " (the la tter re ma rk is r athe r ironic , given that o ne of the d ragg er ca ptains sa id

that it's the longliner fishermen who drink too much an d can be rowdy). She also said that there

hadn't been any land use problems because the dock on the west side (where their boats tie up)

is zoned for fishing, and she believes condom iniums couldn't be built there. She added that there

are some cottages on the east side of the harbor that are owned by a fisherman-run packing

house, but that they are definitely not high-end and are mostly rented to young people who come

to town looking for jobs.

Her husb and has a lso be en do ing so me hard clam min g in the bay wit h his 1 2-yea r-old

son, who this summer will try to do it on his own. The son said that he and his dad had been

bring ing in 3 00-4 00 lbs ./day o n the weeken ds las t year. H e's hoping he ca n app roac h tha t this

year, and also wants to dive for them as well as rake.

On Tilefish Management

Our informant talked at length about the pending tilefish management plan. She showed

data that are being used to determine the new tilefishing regulations, which indicate that the 4

tilefishing longliners in Montauk accou nted for 78 to 91% of the tilefish caught off the northeastern

seaboard of the US between 1988 and 1998. These 4 boats are the biggest producers. Several

boats from New Jersey that generally catch significantly less fish than the Montauk boats, and the

third tier lists "part-timers." There are only 20 boats total that are involved in the fishery, and she

said that 2 are out of Shinnec ock an d that the o ther 14 a re all part-tim ers out o f Barne gat Light,

NJ. Some draggers also bring in tilefish as bycatch she said that this accounts for 4% to 7% of

the total tilefish c atch.

She and the others involved in tilefishing out of Montauk are in favor of some regulation of

the fis hery "f or ou r own prote ction ;" they a ctua lly had b een ask ing fo r regu lations in the ear ly

1990s. The issues discussed are intensified by efforts to limit entry in the tilefish fishery and in the

highly migratory species and shark fisheries, based on recent participation. The four Montauk

longline tilefishing boats ha ve spec ialized in tilefish in rec ent years, w hile form er tilefishing bo ats

elsewh ere, esp ecially Barne gat Light, N J, have d iversified to s wordfish and tuna s.

She argued that their specialization in tilefish has greatly limited their ability to move from

fishery to fishery when dwindling fish stocks or price fluctuations might otherwise have pushed

them towards diversification, and the outcome has been lost opportunity to participate in other

fisheries, which now have limited entry. She said that her boats had held permits for swordfish,

tuna, squid, mackerel, butterfish, lobster and surf clams for as long as they could, but that since

the perm its are base d on h istoric al usa ge, th ey no lo nge r qua lify for th em . She said t hat th is is

especially a problem with the swordfish plan that was slated to go into effect this past July 1,

which would tie the ability to catch tuna and shark to a history of catching swordfish. Since they

have only been catching tuna as bycatch and not swordfish, this regulation would prevent them

from continuing to bring in tun a.

28

Her father had a packing dock in West Sayville, where she worked as a teenager. "I was

always on the physical side anyway, doing the packing, and I also worked in landscaping for

awhile ." Her h usba nd us ed to b e a lobs term an an d brou ght his catch es to th e doc k, and that's

how they met. She said that there are no women fishing out of Montauk right now, though

occasionally you 'll see a n insh ore d ragg er m akin g a da y trip with a fem ale cr ew m em ber. S he sa id

that there used to be two women who regularly did inshore dragging on their boyfriends' boats, but

that they no lo nger do it.

Fishery Profile, Shinnecock/Hampton Bays, NY

Shinnecock /Ham pton Bays is sec ond only to M onta uk a s a co mm ercia l fishin g cen ter in

New York. The offshore fishing industry in this part of Long Island is concentrated to the west of

Shin necock Inlet, o n a ba rrier is land that is just to the south of Ha mp ton B ays. "S hinne cock," as it

is known, is part of the town of Southampton. There is a large county-owned dock that is run by

the town, where most commercial boats tie-up. The pack-out facilit ies and their associated docks

are on private land, including two private unloading docks and one belonging to the Shinnecock

Fishermen's Cooperative. The rest of the land to the east and west of the inlet is a county park.

The NMFS codes for this fishery are for Shinnecock and Hampton Bays. We have combined

them for th is ana lysis be cause bo th ref er to th e sam e plac e (blu efin tu na an d other larg e pela gic

landings are collected using the Shinnecock port code, the rest using Ham pton Bays).

This is primarily a dragger fishing port, otter trawl landings making up 84% of the

poundage and 74% of the value in 1998 (Tables NY-HB1,2). Silver hake (whiting) and Loligo

squid made up over 70% of these landings; 66 other species were landed by draggers, including

bluefish, butterfish, red hake, and summer flounder. Gill-nets are second in importance,

accounting for 12% of the value of landings in 1998. They too had diverse landings, totalling 39

species, led by bluefish (31% of lbs.), angler (28%), and skates (23%). Bottom longlines (7.3% of

value) were used for tilefish; pelagic longlines for swordfish and tunas. There is also a diverse

assem blage of ins hore technique s, inc luding haul s eines , pound-n ets, p ots (f or crab, fis h, ee l,

conch, and both inshore and offshore lobster), fyke-nets, and the shellfish techniques of shovels,

rakes , and "by han d."

29

Table NY-HB1: Landings by Gear, Hampton Bays and Shinnecock, N.Y., 1998

GEAR TYPE: LBS. % VALUE %

Longline, Bottom 2.9 7.3

Handline 0.1 0.4

Lon gline, Pela gic 0.3 1.1

Otter Trawl, Bottom 84.3 74.2

Seines, Common and Haul 0.1 0.1

Gillnet, Sink 10.8 11.8

Pound Net, Fish 1.0 1.3

Pots/Traps, Fish 0.1 0.1

Pots/Traps, Eel 0.0 0.0

Pots/Traps, Conch 0.0 0.0

Pots/Traps, Lobster, Offsh ore 0.0 0.0

Pots/Traps, Lobster, Inshore 0.1 0.3

Sho vels 0.0 0.1

By Hand 0.0 0.0

Rakes 0.0 0.0

Pots/Traps, Crab 0.0 0.0

Fyke-Net, Fish 0.0 0.0

Unknown 0.4 3.3

Total Landings by Weight, 1998: 13,143,401 lbs.

Total Landings by Value, 1998: $9,676,293

30

Table NY-HB2: Landings by Major Species, Shinnecock/Hampton Bays, NY, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES (>2%) LBS. % VALUE %

Angler 3.8 8.3

Bluefish 5.2 3.0

Winter Flounder 1.1 2.2

Summer Flounder 2.1 6.8

Yellowtail Flounder 0.9 2.0

Scup 1.5 3.4

Weakfish 2.5 2.1

Dogfish, NK 7.3 1.5

Skates 3.2 1.4

Tilefish 3.0 7.6

Silver Hake 37.5 23.1

Quahog 0.3 2.9

Loligo Squ id 22.9 26.9

Total Number: 93

Other species of MAFMC interest, by percentage value, 1998: Butterfish (1.6), Atlantic Mackerel

(0.3), Black Sea Bass (0.9), Sm ooth Dogfish (0.0), Spiny Dogfish (0.0), and Illex Squid (0.0).

Field Observations and Interviews, Shinnecock/Hampton Bays, July 1999

Moving from west to east on the Shinnecock waterfront, the commercial fishing area

includes the Municipal Dock, where many of the draggers are tied up; a commercial fish dock; the

local fisherman's cooperative; and a marina which serves both commercial and recreational

boats. E ven as c omm ercial fishing areas g o, this one looks a s if it was no t very well tende d, with

lots of debris and unused equipm ent lying around, despite the fact that there is an active industry

here. There were also several commercial boats at a recreational dock in Hampton Bays,

possibly docked there for repairs. Most of the fish is shipped to Fulton Fish Market, although

much squid goes to buyers in New Jersey. Some of the whiting is exported to Spain. There is a

largefillet operation with a retail market in Shinnecock. Shinneco ck has also been a surf

clamming port but demand for clams from New York State waters has been low.

We interviewed a fisherman who is a member of the cooperative's board. He owns a

dragger which is tied up at the Municipal dock. Almost everyone else was out because "it was

good fishing" that day, but he was in because his boat was being repaired. He said 90% of the

catch in Shinnecock is squid, though a couple of boats go offshore and to Georges Bank for

whiting.

He said there are 24 slips at the Municipal Dock but only 18 are being used by vessels,

the other 6 being in a state of disrepair. The fishermen lease their slips from the town. He

explained that the dock had been created as the result of lobbying by one of the fishermen about

12 years ago and was financed by federal, state and local money, but that the town and the

county have been fighting over who owns it and should administer it ever since then. He said that

whoever is actually in charge doesn't police it and that people leave their garbage there. When

31

we were there, sections of the large parking lot were being used by dockhands to repair nets and

by a welder who our informant said is there all summer fixing dragger doors.

The fis h dock next to the Municip al Dock is a private c omp any that se lls ice and fu el to

some of the fishermen and also has 4 slips for commercial boats. Most of this dock's business

consists of pa ckin g the catc hes of fou r boa ts with a sing le owner th at dock a t the M unic ipal. T his

owner is currently bringing in yellowtail flounder (though another informant said he usually fishes

for whiting).

The cooperative is a packing dock with about 16 members, mostly owner/operators.

There are 10 s lips, all used b y mem bers. M ost of the fish that's br ought into the coop is sold to

Fulton Fish Market, though some of it goes to local buyers. The informant said that one member

is brin ging in large am oun ts of w hiting and that rig ht now this is wha t is supporting th e doc k in

large part. He said the head of the coop own s two boats but doesn't fish himself anym ore. There

were three dockhands this summer, all of whom were local and of college-age.

He said that the coop buys fuel, ice and other supplies in bulk, which is necessary in order

to keep members' costs down. The dock used to be owned by a man who ran a packing house for

local fishermen there. There was also a bar upstairs that used to be the local hangout. The

informant said that the coop would like to fix up that part of the building and reopen it as a

revenu e-produ cer for the coop.

The marina on the other side of the coop is a private fish packer. The owner is a partner

in one boat and has other dockage for perhaps 10 boats. If a boat docks there, it has to pack

there and buy its supplies there. The Shinnecock fishermen used to make their own nets, but the

informant said they now get them from one supplier in Riverhead, Long Island, where they also

get a lot of their wire, chains, rain gear, gloves, etc. There are other vendors in Riverhead that

they use, a nd they also now ge t som e of their su pplies by m ail order an d throug h the Intern et.

His estimate is that there are 30 boats working out of Shinnecock. Most are draggers,

but there are probably 6 gillnetters that go out on the ocean for monkfish, bluefish and striped

bass. He said that there are more gillnetters working out of Shinnecock now than ever before.

The smallest draggers are 45-footers. There are 16 boats that are 60-65' which he described as

"the most constant" producers, all day boats using two-man crews. The four draggers at the dock

adjace nt to the M unicipal D ock ar e 80-foo ters with 3- to 4-ma n crews . Then th ere are 4 boats

over 90'. He said that one of the boats currently goes tilefishing (though our tilefishing informant

in Montauk said there are two tilefishing vessels) in the past it went longlining for tuna and

swordfish. Most of the boats were built in the 1970s, during a vessel building boom driven by the

IRS Investment Tax credit then available. One big change in Shinnecock is that there are fewer

owner/operators than before. According to another observer, this is because the more successful

fishermen have acquired more boats and thus must hire captains. It remains a small-business

fishery, with little investment by non-fishing entities.

Our Shinnecock informant said that all the docks on the street run on volume, but that the

fishermen are doing all r ight even though there are fewer fish, because prices are up. He

described it as "a tight situation," and that if the docks don't stay viable he believes they may be

bought by real estate developers. He said that given Long Island's geographical position between

New Eng land a nd the South, th e clos ings on G eorg es B ank have had a ma jor im pac t on fis hing in

Shinnecock.

32

He works in three or four fisheries a year. Besides squid, he goes out for ground fish or

fluke in the winter. He said that all the boats in S hinneco ck hav e northe ast m ultispecies perm its.

He takes one crew member out on his boat, to whom he pays a share. He said that getting good

crew mem bers has becom e a big problem. "There are b etter jobs on land less hours and m ore

mon ey so the qu ality of the crew s is going d own. O ddly enoug h, there ha ve been few im migra nts

so far, only a few on the docks. " He said this is surprising to him given the fact that there are a

lot of w orkin g clas s Gu atem alans on the eas t end of Lo ng Is land. He s aid that hirin gs ar e m ostly

done through word of mouth.

At 41, he's in the middle age class for Shinnecock boat owners. He has been fishing for

20 years and has lived in the area all his life. He said that 90% of the Shinnecock fisherm en live

nearby, m ostly in the town of South amp ton. He s aid that a fe w of the fis herm en origina lly came to

Shinnecock from other places farther west: one from B rooklyn, another from the Islips and Fire

Island and a third from New Jersey. This was interesting, given information previously gathered

that many Montauk fishermen m igrated there from points to the west. He called Montau k "a more

transient type place." He said there is one woman who has been fishing out of Shinnecock as a

crew member for 3 or 4 years.

His father is a bayman who sti ll goes out for mussels, soft clams and razor clams. He

describes his father as a real entrepreneur. While he sells some of his harvest to a local fish

house or in New York City, he also goes after his own markets, including setting up clam bars for

parties (he said his father had roped him into manning one of the clam bars that coming weekend

at a television celebrity's house in East Ham pton). He said that most of the baym en's boats are

docked in back of their houses or scattered at private docks in the area. Here there is a

Southampton Town Baymen's Association. In response to the question why he didn't become a

baym en as w ell and instea d decide d to invest in a bigger bo at and of fshore fishing, he s aid: "I

wanted to make more money. And sometimes I say to myself, 'I'm not!'" He said that as far as he

knew , som e baym en are ve ry succe ssful an d som e strugg le a lot financ ially.

One problem a fisheries management official pointed out is that Shinnecock Inlet has a

tend ency to silt over, w hich can a lmo st co mp letely curtail o cean fish ing. T he co op inf orm ant said

that, th e inlet was form ed by a hurric ane in 193 8, and tha t com me rcial fis hing s tarted late in

Shinnecock relative to other places on Long Island because people had to wait until the inlet

stabilized in the '50s before establishing the industry there. The official said that when the inlet

silts over now, Shinnecock plummets in importance as far as landings go, whereas it usually vies

with Montauk as the most important port on Long Island. The Shinnecock informant said that the

last time the inlet closed up the federal government dredged the inlet very quickly. He said that

"90% of the reas on" fo r their spee d was pre ssu re fro m th e com me rcial fis hing in dus try. He said

that some of the fishermen took a bus down to Washington to prod the government into taking

responsibility for the inlet. Other than that, there hasn't been much political activity. "One of our

problems is that fishermen don't like to get organized. It is a commercial thing, but it's political

too."

He s aid that the town of So utha mp ton is "gen erally s upportive " of the fishin g indu stry.

"Loc ally, the pape r and the politicians un ders tand the need and s ignific ance of th e fish ery, ev en if

it seems really small economically on the local level." On the other hand, he had this to say about

state and federal regulations and about the state of the industry in general: "We're not shut down

here, bu t we feel like we're be ing sque ezed ou t. At the sam e time, n iches ar e being c reated to

take advantage of higher prices, chasing competition away. I can keep going I haven't invested

in a whole lot of extras, in electronics, and the mortgage on my boat is getting paid off. It's never

been an easy business. Times have been better, but there are still plenty of people making good

money. But we're are all waiting for the straw to break the camel's back. And it's having the effect

of kee ping young er peop le out."

33

Bar\han gout: Fat Lucy's Fish House.

Islip

Weighout data for the port of Islip, like that for Shinnecock, show pelagic longlining for

swo rdfish, tun as (b luefin , big eye , albacore , and yellowf in) plu s other sp ecies, inc luding dolph in

fish. T otal landing s are little m ore th an 20 0,00 0 lbs, worth abou t $540,00 0 in 19 98. A sm all

amount of dragging and gill-netting, not reflected in the NMFS data for Islip, also takes place here,

but fishing activity has declined greatly over the years.

Other New York Fisheries:

Brooklyn

Comm ercial fish landings in New York City's boroughs have declined markedly over the

years. Today landings in Brooklyn were reported in 1998 as less than 30 ,000 pounds, from otter-

trawls (77%), sink gill nets (16%) and handlines. The principal species, out of 17 landed , were

butterfish, bluefish, weakfish, and loligo squid. Sports fishing at Sheepshead Bay and other

sites, have becom e mo re imp ortant than com mer cial fishing.

Columbia, Duchess, Queens, Greene, Rockland, Ulster, Westchester Counties

NMF S has "o ther" cate gories fo r counties where m arine and estuarine fishes ar e landed .

Those for Nassau and Suffolk are treated separately above. We lumped the others together; they

largely represent estuarine and riverine fisheries. Most of these fisheries are the riverine ones for

American shad (85% of pounds, 94% of value). Small amounts of menhaden, blue back herring,

winter flounder, weakfish, scup and other species (totalling 10) were reported. The key gear types

were drift and sink gill nets, both used for shad. Other gear types, with minor catches, were otter

trawls, fyke nets, handlines, and fish pots/traps. The catches in 1998 were very small, totalling

less than 200,000 lbs. or $230,000.

34

3. New Jersey's Fishing Ports

New Jersey is the most densely populated and one of the most industrialized and

urbanized states in the nation. Although small in area, it also has a long coastline, about 100

miles, as well as two major tidal rivers, the Hudson and Delaware, and numerous estuaries inside

its barrier islands and embayments. Much like New York, its fisheries are found in both urban and

rural setting s.

Table NJ-1: Commercial Landings by County and Port, New Jersey, 1998

Por t Name

Unidentified

ATLANTIC CITY

OTH ER AT LANT IC

OTHER BERGEN

CAPE MAY

WILDWOOD

OTHER CAPE MAY

SEA ISLE CITY

OTHER

CUMBERLAND

OTHER ESSEX

OTHER HUNTERDON

OTHER MIDDLESEX

BELFORD

NEPTUNE

HIGHLANDS

OTHER MONMOUTH

Mon mou th Co . Tota l:

PT. PLEASANT

LONG

BEACH/BARNEGAT

LIGHT

OTHER OCEAN

OTHER SALEM

Landed Percent Landed Percent

Coun ty Pounds Pounds Value Value

57120 0.0% 33,600 0.0%

ATLA NTIC 37281429 19.5% 17,833,492 19.6%

ATLA NTIC 1257049 0.7% 2,325,991 2.6%

BERGEN ** ** ** **

CAPE MAY 87244668 45.6% 25,757,246 28.3%

CAPE MAY 6193378 3.2% 3,492,862 3.8%

CAPE MAY 1190767 0.6% 1,296,893 1.4%

CAPE MAY 745111 0.4% 1,193,939 1.3%

CUMBERLAND 4444939 2.3% 5,573,267

ESSEX

HUNTERDON

MIDDLESEX

MONMOUTH

MONMOUTH

MONMOUTH

MONMOUTH

OCEAN

OCEAN

OCEAN

SALEM

6.1%

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

** ** ** **

8074562 4.2% 3796682 4.2%

31,916,942 16.7% 16,715,450 18.4%

10,032,811 5.2% 10,194,378 11.2%

985,565 0.5% 1,162,418 1.3%

558,844 0.3% 449,561 0.5%

191,510,458 100.00% 90,919,181 100.00%Tota l:

Note: ** ind icates tha t landings d ata are c onfidential. Th e total for Mo nmou th

Coun ty ports is g iven in a se parate ro w.

Table NJ-1 shows 1998 commercial landings, from NMFS dealer weighout data, for New

Jers ey’s po rts, an d the coun ties in which they are fo und . This repo rt is organ ized by coun ty,

beginnin g with Mo nmo uth Cou nty in the north and end ing with Cu mbe rland Co unty in the so uth.

The major fishing ports of New Jersey, from north to south, are Belford, a diversified commercial

port with a marketing coopera tive; Atlantic Highlands, a charter-boat and party-boat center;

High lands , a sm all lobs tering and c lam min g por t; Sha rk R iver (N eptu ne/B elm ar), a noth er sm all

lobstering and recreational fishing port; Brielle, a charter-boat and party-boat recreational fishing

center; Point Pleasant Beach, a diversified commercial and recreational port with a marketing

cooperative and significant surf clam/ocean quahog activity; Barnegat Light (Long Beach Island),

35

combining recreational and commercial fishing with a strong tradition of deep-water longlining but

now diversified; Atlantic City, a surf clam/ocean quahog port; Sea Isle City, a small, diversified

port; Wildwood and Cape May, both commercial and recreational, with significant surf clam and

ocean quahog, scalloping, finfish dragging, and other fisheries (the largest port in the state and

the site of several large seafood packing and processing firms); and Port Norris, once the center

of oystering but now mostly the site of crabbing and finfishing plus oyster and clam processing

plants. Small-scale clamming, crabbing, and other kinds of fishing take place from numerous

other sites around the 100 miles of New Jersey’s coast, and substantial seafood processing can

be foun d in various inland com mun ities.

Monm outh Cou nty Pro file (includes the fishing centers of Belford, Atlantic Highlands, Highlands,

Neptune/Shark R iver)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Monmouth County had a population of 553,124. Females

outnumbered males by a small amount, about 3%. Rural population comprised 9.6% of the total

population, but less than 1% of the total population resided on a farm. Monmouth County is a

rapidly growing suburb of the NY-NJ Metropolitan Area.

Racial and Ethnic Composition

Of the population in Monmouth County, 87.4% was white and 8.5% was black. The next largest

racial group was Hispanic at 4.1%. There were small numbers of American Indians, less than

1.0%, and Asian, 2.8%. Of the population, 92.5% were native, and of those 61.2% were from

New Jersey. The largest reported ancestries for Monmouth County in 1990 were Irish (138,815

people), Italian (115,652 people), and Germa n (110,026 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest in Monmouth County comprising 33.2% of the

population. In Monmouth County, 24.4% of the population was under the age of 18 and 12.7%

was over 65 years of age.

Household Composition

Of th e 197 ,570 hous eho lds in M onm outh Cou nty, 73 .8% were fam ily hous eho lds. O f the f am ily

households, 82.7% contained married couples and single females headed 13.3%. There was an

aver age of 2.7 4 per sons per hous eho ld, howeve r, hou seholder s living alone occupied 22.0% of all

households.

Of the C ounties 2 18,408 total hous ing units, 90 .5% we re occu pied acc ording to th e 1990 Cens us.

Of the occupied houses, 72.7% were owner occupied and 24.7% were renter occupied. The

median value of owner occupied units was $180,400 and median rent was $567. Homeowner

vacancy rate was 3.0% and rental vacancy rate was 9.2%. One-unit housing comprised 65.8% of

the to tal, an d ten or m ore u nits c om prise d 12.4% of the total.

Educational Trends

Of the persons 25 years of age and older in Monmouth County, 82.8% held a high school diploma

or higher and 28.4% he ld a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Income

Per capita income for the County was $20,565, according to the 1989 Census, and median

household income was $45,912. Of the 543,183 people for whom poverty status was determined,

5.0% fell below the poverty line.

Employment

36

Of the p ersons 16 years o f age an d older in M onm outh Co unty, 68.1% were in the labor forc e. Of

these, 98.3% were in the civilian labor force, of which 5.2% were unemployed. More recent

unemployment figures for the area were 4.8% in 1997 and 4.3% in 1998. Although it appears,

according to the more recent figures, that unemployment is slightly higher at the beginning of the

year, it is actually rathe r steady.

Employment Industries

Of th e 275 ,140 em ployed pers ons 16 yea rs of age o r olde r, 1.4% were in the a gricu lture, f ores try,

and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector was professional specialty occupations at

17.6% followed by retail at 16.7%. The next largest sectors were executive, administrative, and

managerial occupations; administrative support occupations; sales occupations; precision

production, craft, and repair occupations; and finance, insurance, and real estate. Government

worke rs com prised 15 .7% of the work ing popu lation and 5 .8% we re self-em ployed wo rkers.

Racial and Gende r Composition of the Fishing Industry

Accor ding to the 1 990 C ensus , there we re 41 ca ptains or o fficers of fishing ves sels, all white

males, in Monmouth County. There were also 142 white men that engaged in fishing as an

occupation.

Fisheries P rofile, Belford

The fishing port of Belford is on a tidal creek leading out to Raritan Bay and the New York

Bays. Its fishery is oriented both to the bay and to the Atlantic Ocean, which is reached by going

out around Sandy Hoo k, a few miles from Belford. Belford and neighboring Port Monm outh were

once a large industrial fishing and processing center for m enhaden, but the m enhaden factory

closed in 1 982 . Men haden ar e still ca ugh t with s ma ll purs e-se ine bo ats and po und-nets , prim arily

for the bait market, and in 1998 they accounted for over 2/3rd of the landings in Belford (Table NJ-

B1) Today Belford's fisheries are sm all-scale and owner-operated; mo st of the finfish are

handled through a fisherm en's cooperative, which sells wholesale but also runs a sm all retail store

and restaurant. Lobsters are sold in other ways, including through a local lobster pound. Otter

trawl finfishing is the most important activity, accounting for 50% of the landed value in 1998

(Table NJ-B1). It is a multi-species fishery: 42 species were landed in 1998. Major species

caught by otter trawlers landing in Belford, by landed value, were summer flounder, Loligo squid,

silver hake, winter flounder, spiny dogfish and skates. Lobster pot fishing is third only to purse

seining a nd drag ging; it acco unted fo r 17% of landed value in 19 98.

In recent years surf clam and ocean quahog vessels have been offloading at Belford, but

in 1998 they accounted for less than 4% of the landed value (in contrast to 1992, when ocean

quahogs accounted for over 30% of landed value). Crab dredging, in Raritan Bay, is of equal

value. The last of New Jersey's pound-nets are in Raritan and Sandy Hook Bays; they accounted

for 3.9% of Belford's total landed value in 1998. Some of that was from menhaden but 27 other

species were also landed from the pound-nets, notably bluefish, weakfish, summer flounder, and

butterfish; small amounts of tuna, skates, shad, tautog. Other fishing techniques used include

crab an d fish pots , handlining , and diving .

37

Table NJ-B1: Landings by Gear Type, Belford, NJ, 1998

GEAR TYPE, BELFORD, NJ Lbs. % Value %

Diving Gear 0.0 0.0

Dredge, SCOQ 2.7 3.8

Dredge, Crab 2.3 6.1

Hand Line 0.0 0.1

Pots/Traps, Lobster, Offsh ore 2.0 17.1

Pots/Traps, Blue Crab 0.0 0.0

Pots/Traps, Fish 0.0 0.2

Pound Nets 3.8 3.9

Purse Seine, Menhaden 65.1 18.6

Trawl, Otter, Bottom, Fish 23.9 50.1

Unknown 0.0 0.1

Note: “0.0" means more than 0 but less than 0.05. The figures for landings from

which th ese pe rcentag es are d erived ar e not give n beca use the y are co nfidential.

Other Mon mouth County P orts

Highland s (at the m outh of tw o large tidal rive rs com ing out into S andy Ho ok Ba y with

access to the Atlantic Ocean) and Neptune (in combination with neighboring municipalities which

surround the tidal basin known as Shark River) are primarily small lobstering ports, sequestered

within summer resort communities. Data for these ports are confidential. Highlands is also the

site of bay clam depuration plants, which serve baymen who clam under state permits in Raritan

and Sandy Hook Bays and the Navesink River. A small amount of handlining for finfish and

potting for rock crab supplements lobstering. Atlantic Highlands is a center for recreational

charter and party boat fishing.

Crabbing constitutes most of the landings for the rest of Monmouth County. The winter

dredge fishery for blue crabs in Raritan Bay and its tributaries is significant. Clamming is also

imp ortan t. It tak es pla ce in t he Sandy Hoo k an d Ra ritan B ays an d tida l rivers and is large ly

depen dent on a "depura tion" proce ss, locate d in Highlan ds, as w ell as som e "relaying" of c lams to

cleaner waters in south Jersey. Crabbers an d clamm ers, like those involved in other fisheries, live

in and aro und Be lford, High lands, an d various mun icipalities along the shor e of Ra ritan Bay.

Field Observations and Interviews, Belford, NJ, 1998-1999

In this report we feature Belford, the largest fishing center. The report is based on a

recent study by Marie Cieri (Cieri 1999). About 150 fishermen work out of the port of Belford,

which is on a tidal creek on the south shore of R aritan Bay in east central New Jersey. There are

38

about 30 fishing vessels in use, ranging from ocean-going steel-hulled trawlers to small pound­

netters and clam garvies. Many live in the town of Belford (pop. 4,151, 1990), which is part of

Middletown Township, but some live in other parts of the township and other municipalities on the

bayshore. The majority of the fishing families live in Belford, and the primary organization that

functions on behalf of the fishing community is the Belford Seafood Cooperative. The major

fishing en terprises are this co operative and a lob ster bus iness.

Belford b ecam e a town in 1891; be fore that it wa s part of P ort Mon mou th, and bo th

becam e cen ters o f the m enhaden pro cessing indus try (fer tilizer an d fish me al), ev entu ally

consolidated into one enterprise, just west of Belford harbor in the town of Port Monmouth. It was

torn down in 1982. W est of the fish plant was housing for migrant work ers, most of whom were

southern blacks who left after the plant closed. This housing and other cabins and cottages

fronting the bay subsequently became homes for clammers, fishermen, and other local workers;

the area is now cleared of housing, made up of sandy inclines covered with low scrub growth,

which now belongs to Monmouth County. A train connected Belford with New York City until the

1960s, b ringin g com mu ters to live in th e tow n. A s tate h ighway from th e Ga rden State Park way,

which w as com pleted in 19 57, eas ily reaches th e town. T his highw ay bisects the town in to a "wet"

and a "dry" side. The "wet" side includes extensive undeveloped or partially developed estuarine

wetlan ds, m ixed use bu ildings, a nd the fishing port. It is a lso the location of the to wnsh ip's

sewag e plant an d landfill.

Belford fronts on Raritan Bay, which is polluted from industrial and municipal refuse but

still provides a rich habitat for shellfish and fishes. The bay's shellfisheries were closed during the

1960s, due to connections to hepatitis epidemics, but today clams can be caught through a

special state “relay” and “depuration” programs which ensure that clams are rid of bacterial

impurities before being marketed. Raritan Bay and neighboring Sandy Hook Bay are important

locations for pound-net fishing, seining for menhaden, and other fisheries, but the fishermen also

go out to s ea, arou nd San dy Hook .

The Belford Seafood Cooperative was founded in 1954 by fishermen to leverage higher

prices from Fulton Fish Market, the main outlet for their catches. In its early years the coop had

approximately 80 members but mem bership is currently around 60. Non-members working out of

Belford harbor can and do sell their catches through the coop. The coop established its own year-

roun d reta il ma rket and im prov ed it, adding a res taura nt, a fe w yea rs ag o, bu t mo st of th e cat ch is

still so ld at the Fu lton F ish M arke t and othe r urba n fish ma rket s. Its m arke t serv es a h ighly

diverse clientele, including small vendors from New Jersey's urban areas and ethnic minorities,

including Asian-Americans w ho come for specialties such as black sea bas s. Experiments we re

recently be gun to gr ow-out b lack se a bass in seawa ter pens .

The center of fishing activity is the harbor, formed from the mouth of a meandering creek

and a jetty a t the e dge of the bay. O n the wes t sho re of this s lip is the coop as well as its retail

fish market, a small, inexpensive restaurant, and a parking lot. The creek is very narrow

(approximately 75 to 100 feet) and usually packed with about 70 fishing boats ranging in size from

about 24' to 80'. On both sides of the creek are small to medium-sized buildings and shacks,

mec hanical e quipm ent, nets a nd lobste r pots, truc ks, and sma ll areas of o pen land related to

commercial fishing, i.e. spaces for repairing and drying nets. South of the coop is a small town

dock and par king lot.

The only other retail businesses on the "wet" side of Belford are a bar and eatery near the

harbor, a breakfast and lunch res taurant that sells some groceries just across the border in Port

Mon mo uth. T here are m ore b usinesses on the "d ry" side , bord ering the s tate h ighway. Be lford is

a working class town ensconced within a more affluent, educated and professionally oriented

population, judging from US C ensus figures. Like other "bayshore" towns of this area, there are

substantial numbers of people over the age of 16 listed in the occupational category for

39

agric ulture , fore stry, an d farmin g, alm ost a ll of wh om mu st be in fish ing giv en the nature o f this

area: 85 for Belford in 1990 (for the nearby census tracts, which include homes of many of

Belfo rd's f ishe rs, the figure s we re 33 for Le onardo, 5 0 for Port M onm outh , 42 fo r Atlan tic

Highland s, and 39 in East Ke ansbu rg).

In the 1980s, the fishing community of Belford, led by a fishermen's wives association,

fought gentrification of the port area in order to protect the livelihoods and futures of fishing

families. The old menhaden plant property, then the largest vacant waterfront property of the New

York bays, was purchased by a developer; eventually part of the property was given to the coop,

and some was earmarked for condominium development and New York City ferry service, neither

of which has yet co me a bout. M eanwh ile the coun ty began b uying prop erty along this coast,

developing it into a recreational marina, bicycle trails, and new roads. Today, a citizens

association cooperates with the fishing community to try to control the nature of development on

Belford's waterfro nt.

A survey done in 1984 (Princeton Economic Research 1985) found high levels of

dependence on the fishery; only 25% of those surveyed had had any other work experience.

W hen time s are bad, fishe rmen m ay "go up the roa d" to fin d other em ploym ent, b ut it is re latively

unspecialized and unskilled work. The fishing community --defined more in terms of fishing out of

the port of Belford than residence in Belford-- has a high degree of relatedness. The 1984 survey

found th at only 2 resp onden ts (5% ) said they ha d no relative s in the fishe ry, past or pre sent.

Ocea n Co unty P rofile (includes Point Plea sant, Brielle, a nd Barn egat Ligh t)

Population

The total popu lation in Oc ean Cou nty wa s 433 ,203 in 199 0. Fema les ou tnum bere d m ales by a

small amo unt, 5.7%. Only 20.4% of the population were rural, and less than 1% lived on a farm.

Ocean County has grown rapidly from coastal tourism, retirement community development, and

general suburban expansion within the NY-NJ Metropolitan Area.

Racial and Ethnic Composition

The main racial group in the county was White, which made up 95.3% of the population. The next

largest group was Hispanic, at 3.2%, followed by Black at 2.8%. Small numbers of American

Indians and Asians resided in Ocean County. Of the population, 93.4% were native, of which

68.5% were born in New Jersey. The most reported ancestries for the area were Irish (113,220

people) , Germ an (109 ,560 peo ple), and Ita lian (101,65 9 peop le).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest in Ocean County and comprised 28.1% of the

total population. Of the population, 22.7% was under 18 years of age and 23.2% was 65 years of

age or older.

Household Composition

Of th e 168 ,147 hous eho lds in th e cou nty, 71 .8% were fam ily hous eho lds. O f the f am ily

households, 84.5% contained couples and single females headed 12.0%. There was an average

of 2.54 persons per household, however, householders living alone occupied 24.9% of the total

households.

Of the 219,863 total housing units, 76.5% we re occupied. Of the occup ied units, 82.9% were

owner occupied and 17.1% were renter occupied. Homeowner vacancy rate was 4.4% and rental

vacancy rate was 17.3%. Median value of owner occupied housing units was $126,000 and

med ian rent wa s $578 . One un it detache d hous ing com prised 73 .1% of the total hou sing units.

40

Educational Trends

Of the persons 25 years of age and older in Ocean County, 74.9% held a high school diploma or

higher and 15.3% he ld a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Income

Per capita income for the county was $15,598 and median family household income was $33,110,

according to the 1989 Census. Of the 426,849 people for whom poverty status was determined,

6.0% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 3 45,672 person s 16 years of age o r older, 194 ,096, or 56 .2% we re in the labo r force. O f

these, 99.3% were in the civilian labor force, of which 5.9% were unemployed. More recent

unem ployme nt figures for the are a were 4 .8% in 19 97 and 4.3% in 1 998. Altho ugh, ac cording to

the more recen t figures, unemploymen t appears to be slightly higher at the beginning of the year,

it is ac tually ra ther s tead y.

Employment Industries

Of the 181,415 employed persons 16 years of age and older, 1.5% were in the agriculture,

forestry, and fishery industries sector. The largest sector of all was retail at 19.5% followed by

administrative support occupations, including clerical, at 16.8%. The next largest sectors were

sales; precision production, craft, and repair occupations; professional specialty occupations;

executive, administrative, and managerial; and service occupations, except protective and

household.

Racial and Gende r Composition of the Fishing Industry

Acc ordin g to th e 199 0 Ce nsus, the re we re 36 white ma le cap tains or off icers of fish ing ve sse ls in

Ocean County. There were also 267 white males and 1 white female who engaged in fishing as

an occupation.

Fisheries Profile, Point Pleasant, NJ

The comm ercial fisheries of Point Pleasant are third in New Jersey to those of the Cape

May-Wildwood area and Atlantic City (Table NJ-1). The weigh-out data include some bayman

fisheries (i.e. "by hand" and crab dredge gears), but this is primarily an ocean fishing port, with a

long history involving ocean pound-nets and fisheries focusing on the offshore 'canyons' of the

region.

The fishing port is actually Point Pleasant Beach, a borough within the larger town of Point

Pleasant. Like so many ports of the Mid-Atlantic region, it is inlet-dependent. Ocean-going

fishers must pass through the often dangerous Manasquan Inlet, a challenge shared with the

recreational fishing community including the party and charter boat businesses of Point Pleasant

and neigh borin g Brie lle. Th is is a h ighly de velop ed co asta l regio n. Cu rren tly there is a wh olesale

finfish packing dock at Point Pleasant, a fishermen's cooperative. Another dock is primarily used

for offload ing surf c lams and oc ean qu ahogs although finfish m ay be han dled there as well.

The fishe ries a re ve ry dive rse, th e clas sic s ituatio n in the Mid-Atlan tic. Tw o stand ou t in

terms of volume and value: otter trawls and gillnetting, the latter particularly important for spiny

dogfish as well as bluefish, weakfish, and other species (Table NJ-PP1). But sea scallop

dredgin g is very im portant, as are surf clamm ing/ocea n quah ogging a nd offs hore lobs tering.

Landings by major species for Point Pleasant are confidential but one can generalize that the

most valuable species, in 1998, was angler or monkfish, which was partly incident to the scallop

fishery but also caught by specialized gill-netters both local and migrating from other ports in the

northeast and mid-Atlantic. Sea scallops were next in terms of ex-vessel value in 1998, followed

by Loligo squid, a major focus of the local dragger fishery in the last decade, sum mer flounder,

41

also a traditional fishery of the area but sharply cut back by regulations; lobster; spiny dogfish (like

monkfish, caught by gill-netters as well as other fishers), and silver hake, or whiting. Whiting was

one of the mainstays of this fishery from the 1970s through the 1980s; its availability and

abundance ha ve since declined. In terms of pounds landed, menhad en (purse-seined) and surf

clams and ocean quahogs were the leading species in 1998, having come to replace the

traditional otter trawl finfish fishery in importance over the past decade. Table NJ-PP1 gives

landings by gear type.

Table NJ-PP1: Landings by Gear Type, Point Pleasant, NJ, 1998

Dredge, Crab

GEAR TYPE, POINT PLEASANT,

NJ:

Lbs. % Value %

By Hand 0.0 0.0

0.0 0.0

Dredge, Sea Scallop 1.2 10.4

Dredge, SCOQ 51.4 49.9

Gill Net, Drift 1.0 0.7

Gill Net, Sink 11.0 13.5

Hand Line 0.1 0.1

Longline, Pela gic 0.1 0.2

Pots/Traps, Lobster Offshore 0.6 3.5

Pots/Traps, Fish 0.0 0.0

Purse Seine, Menhaden 20.9 3.7

Tra wl, Otter, Bottom, Fish 13.6 17.7

Tro ll Line 0.0 0.0

Tro ll Line, Tuna 0.0 0.0

Unknown 0.2 0.3

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 31,916,900 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $16,715,400 dollars

Field Observations and Interviews, Point Pleasant Beach, NJ

The town of Point Pleasant (pop. 18,177, 1990) is located at the mou th of the Manasquan

Inlet at the northern border of Ocean Cou nty. The town's economy is geared toward the summer

tourist and recreational business. However, it is more than a "beach town”, and has a large resident

population. It is close to a larger township, called Brick or Bricktown (pop. 66,473, 1990), and across

the Manasquan River from Manasquan (5,369, 1990) and Brielle (4,406). The fisheries are

concentrated in an area known as Point Pleasant Beach, along a sandy strip which includes

restaurants, a fisherman's supply store, sm all marinas, charter and party boat docks, and two

commercial fishing docks.

One of the Cape May seafood businesses has two fishing properties in Point Pleasant, one

of which is now used for offloading and trucking surf clams and ocean quahogs. (Each of these

docks had been used for finfish until about 10 years ago). From 6 to 10 boats land clams here,

according to company personnel interviewed in Cape May. There are 15 crew at the docks and

42

about 50 on the boats. There is also a new (2000) seafood processing plant, initially shucking surf

clams. One existed here two decades ago, part of the early surf clam indus try.

A fishermen's cooperative owns two other properties, one for storing and working on gear

and some dockage, the other including the coop 's offices, gear storage, ice-making, packing house,

and a retail store. The cooperative mostly depends on its fourteen or so members, who have older,

wooden-hulled vessels, 45-65' in length. They are geared for bottom otter trawling in a mixed-

species, diversified fishe ry. The vess els usually have a two or three man crew, including the

captain, who are paid shares of the profits. They are all hired loca lly. Although there are families with

several generations in the fisheries, in recent years crew mem bers are not often related to the

cap tain or owner. Some mem bers of this cooperative and some crew mem bers have been ethn ic

minorities (Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and others). A few women have crewed on these boats.

The boats are all owner-operated. They tend to fish in areas of Hudson Canyon called "the

Mudhole" or "the Gully." The Mud hole is closer and has a dredged channe l, but poor landings,

especia lly of silver hake ("whiting") have forced most to move north into the Gully, where silver hake

seem to be more plent iful. The average trip to the Mud hole is one to three days, but for the Gully

can last a week.

Most of the draggermen at the cooperative consider themselves loligo squ id and whiting

specialists, but different species are targeted at different times, depending on the conditions of the

ocean, the market, and the preferences of the captain. Squ id landings began to overtake silver hake

landings in this fleet in 1992 and now account for over 50% of the landed value of Point Pleasant

trawlers. At first it was a by-catch while silver hake fishing in the Gully. Now it is targeted by some of

the captains. As one cap tain stated, "You can't help but target squ id sometimes, there is so much

out there." Squ id is sold to local processors. The cooperative is at a disadvantage in marketing

squ id because mem bers lack freezer boats or refrigerated sea water boats, and thus do not receive

the same price that boats so equipped receive, partic ularly in Cape May.

Summer flounder has long been a mainstay of this fishe ry, especia lly in the Mud hole in

September and October, as well as other times in New Jersey and New York waters. Because of

sharp quota restrictions, it is now a derby-like fishe ry. It is marketed in the fresh fish markets of New

York and Philadelphia, in local restaura nts and fish stores, and in the coop 's own retail store.

At one time a few trawlers targeted scup (also called porgies), partia lly because doing so

took pressure off a supply-burdened whiting market. (There was also a significant offshore summer

flounder fishery in the winter months, for a few boats). Today no vess els target scup but may

encounter large schools in the winter. Marketing is similar. Spiny dogfish have emerged as a very

important fishery for the draggers and even more so for a gill-net fleet, both local and visiting, which

has grown in recent years. Gill-netters have used "runaround" nets for species such as bluefish,

Spanish macke rel, little tuna, scup, and weakfish, although this gear did not appear in the 1998

NMFS data. They use drift and sink nets for dogfish, angler, bluefish, weakfish, and other species.

Angler, or monkfish, are partic ularly important. In 1998 local fishermen using sink gill nets caught

almost 17 million pounds of monkfish as well as over 8 million pounds of spiny dogfish.

Declining catches and restricted fisheries have hurt this fishing com mun ity seve rely. Many

boats have left the fishery and boats are for sale. Existing operations have difficulty investing in

major improvements, either to the waterfront properties or to the vessels.

Fishe rman 's Memorial

43

The fishing com mun ity of Point Pleasant was hard struck by the January 1999 tragedies in

the surf clam/ocean quahog fishe ry. The Adriatic, the Beth Dee Bob, and the Ellie B. all went down

during storms that month, as well as another vess el, the Cape Fear, form erly based in New Jers ey,

up in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. Eleven lives were lost. In the aftermath, mem bers of the fishing

com munity, led by the dock manage rs at the surf clam/ocean quahog dock, began the work of

designing and funding a fishermen's memorial, which is being built by a local sculptor and will have

the names of many of the fishermen of this part of the coast who lost their lives at sea. The

memorial will include the ship's bell of one of the vess els lost in January 1999.

Field Observations and Interviews, Recreational Fishing, Point Pleasa nt/Brielle area, NJ, July

1998

Funding and time constra ints precluded our studying the recreational fisheries as much as

the commercial fisheries in the Mid-Atlan tic region. However, we are able to discuss some aspec ts

of the recreational fisheries of the Point Pleasant area because of our involvement in a separa te

study, for NMFS, on the social and cultural dimensions of highly migratory species management

(Wilson and McCay 1998). The following is based in part on the results of a meeting with charter

and party boat captains, journalists, tack le shop owners, and other interested parties in July 1998.

The Borough of Brielle is located in the southernmost region of Monm outh Cou nty, across

the Manasquan River from Point Pleasant. Its 1990 population was 4,406, and nearly 50% of the

population were over 44, reflecting its role as one of the many Jersey Shore communities attracting

retirees. From a fisheries perspective, its bait and tack le shops and charter and party boat fleet, and

marinas, may be considered part of the "Port of Manasquan" which involves Brielle, Point Pleasant

Beach, Point Pleasant, and Manasquan, centering on both the Manasquan River and Manasquan

Inlet.

It is an area where recreational fishermen are as "trad itiona l" as commercial fishermen are.

The context of our meeting was a soc io-ec onomic study of impacts of proposed alternatives for the

management of tuna and sharks (Wilson and McCay 1998). Bluefish management was another

topic that loomed large at the time. Other species being managed at state, interstate, and federal

levels are also important to the area's recreational fisheries, including summer flounder, tautog,

black sea bass, scup, Atlan tic macke rel.

The "Port of Manasquan" is one of the most important of the "inlet" ports along the barrier

beach complex that makes up the New Jersey coast. It has been a center of both recreational and

commercial fishing since the early 1800s. W ithin the mem ory of the people we talked with, there

were at least 100 working charter boats in the port. Today Brielle has 21 charter/p arty boats of which

14 are "full-time" headboats. There are 64 charter/p arty boats in Point Pleasant. The boats usually

fish relatively close to shore for fluke, bluefish, and other species. The majo rity who fish offshore are

private boats with or without NMFS angler perm its for bluef in tuna.

W ith regard to the pelag ic fisheries, the area has histo rically, and until rece ntly, been a

bluef in tuna port. More generally, New Jersey has had a recreational school bluef in fishery long

before longliners, purse seiners and general categories developed their fisheries. In the Brielle/Point

Pleasant area, bluef in tuna, partic ularly the smaller schooling tuna, still rem ain important for some

periods of the year, at least when the northern management area is open for bluef in tuna fishing.

According to historical docum ents found by a respon dent, in the 1890s "catboats" from nearby Long

Island were engaged in a bluef in tuna recreational fishe ry. In the 1930s there is documentation of

huge catches by boats from ports of northern New Jers ey, including Brielle/Point Pleasant. In one

mon th of 1939, the weekly scores of northern New Jersey boats showed 19,998 bluef in tuna. In

contras t, in 1998, the entire coast wide quota was 269 MT, or about 19,000 fish, the same amo unt,

and for the who le year, not just one month.

44

Here, as elsewhere in New York and New Jers ey, the highly migratory species fisheries are

often known as the "canyon" fisheries, because they take place along the edges and deep waters of

the Baltimore and Hudson underwater canyons, as well as around eddies and at the edge of the

continental shelf. In the past, we were told, bluef in tuna cou ld be caught on day trips in coastal

waters, as well as the canyons, and they were the major source of prof it for the charter boat fleet

here (and elsewhere in New Jersey and the larger Mid-Atlantic). At one time, the full-tim e "canyon

fishermen" included hundreds of inshore bluef in tuna boats, "6-pack" boats (i.e. smaller charter

vess els certified to carry no more than 6 passengers; also known as "uninspected" boats). One

respondent recalls, 20 years ago, about 20 miles out in the Hudson Canyon, seeing 300 boats

fishing for tuna one night. Now, the boats have to go 80 miles offshore, on two day trips, dealing with

the risks of the weather. The canyon fishery is now much farther offshore, and the canyon fisheries

for tunas are thought of as extra opportunities for charter boat captains, whose regulars might

occasionally ask for offshore tuna trips. Incre asingly, the pelag ic canyon fisheries out of the port of

Manasquan as well as Cape May and other recreational ports are prosecuted by private owners of

expensive, large boats rather than for-hire operations. Recent impro vements in the U.S. economy

have once aga in fueled investment in expensive offshore fishing boats, and this is a major

contribution to New Jerse y's econom y. The majo rity of the private boats used and bought in the

Cape May area, for example, are built in New Jers ey.

It must be emphasized that New York and New Jersey still have viable canyon fisheries, and

they are extre me ly important. The Hudson Canyon offshore fishe ry, of the Brielle/Point Pleasant

fleet, really started 15 to 20 years ago, and they rely heavily on it for the fall fishe ry. This fishery has

diminished, and the smaller, less powerful boats are gone. W e were told that now "there 's no such

thing as owner-operated boats," just the boats of the larger fleets. The smaller boats have difficulty

with the offshore, canyon fishe ry. One respondent said that on a recent Labor Day weekend, there

were maybe 100 boats out fishing, but other, less popular nights, only 3 or 4 at the mos t, and he's

often all alone.

Regulations have had a major impact on the charter and head boat business. In 1998 the

local charter boats were generally unable to book tuna trips because of bag limits. They ... “can't get

people to take the boat out if they're allowed to keep only one fish apiece." Inspected vess els (over 6

passengers) are not allowed to bring in any more than 3 fish/1 trip. “Twelve passenger” boats can

not book on bluef in tuna. One of the charter boat owners/captains said his business did a study of

the four "busiest captains" of the thirty they have (none are full-time). In 1991 they averaged 30-35

tuna trips each. In 1996 they averaged 10-12 trips. In 1997 they had one trip among the four. None

of the captains had booked tuna trips for 1998. One of the captains shared his experience, beginning

over 20 years ago in Montauk, New York making shark and tuna charter trips. In 1987, in New

Jers ey, still almost all charter trips were shark and tuna. But in 1998, he has had only two shark

charters, a few more tuna charters. He estimates the business for sharks and tuna is about 10% of

what it was before.

Tod ay, bluefish has generally replaced the tunas as the important inshore/offshore

recreational fishery in northern New Jers ey. This is a major turn around. According to a respon dent,

in 1949, there were 438 bluefish landed versus 11,000 bluef in tuna, in one week in the northern New

Jersey ports. These were mostly schooling bluefin. There are large runs of "school" bluef in tuna out

there now, but "you can't catch them and get the trips," that is, you are not allowed to catch enough

of them, or with enough certa inty, to get people to charter trips in advance. This fishery collapsed, in

the late 1960s, after the advent of purse seiners in 1967. Resp onden ts also pointed out that,

according to a 1947 tack le shop publication, there were 193 full-tim e charter boats in New Jersey

then, compared with fewer than 50 today. The difference, several people said, was due to "blue fin

tuna taken away."

Billfish are more often a by-catch in this fishe ry, compared with the southern part of New

Jersey where they are an important directed fishery and the focus of a major tournam ent, the Mid-

45

Atlantic, alleged to be the "richest" ma rlin and tuna tournament in the world, according to the money

paid out, for most of the 1990s. However, even in northern New Jersey billfish are important to the

offshore canyon trips. At one time there were inshore trips for white marlin. And, according to a

tack le shop owner in Brielle that caters to the offshore sports fishermen, the private boat owners at

the Brielle docks want to catch billfish. This is a big part of the tack le shop business, representing a

significant profit. Mar lin lures cost up to $60, and people usually buy 6 or so at a time. There might

be 25 or 30 boats in July and August doing this.

Swordfish has always bas ically been a commercial fishery in this area. There was a directed

recreational fishery out of Shinnecock, New York, a very elite fishe ry. But now it is a valued and very

rare by-catch. Local and other commercial boats landed swordfish, and tunas, in Point Pleasant for

some years, partic ularly when an importer/exporter had a dock there in the 1980s-e arly 1990s.

There are 8 tack le shops in the Brielle/Point Pleasant area: 5 in Brielle, and others in Point

Pleasant, Point Pleasant Beach, and Manasquan. There are two more that service prim arily the

shore and bank fishermen who fish Manasquan Inlet. Some are heavily dependent on offshore

HMS fishing. One respondent says that his business depends on HMS for 70% of its overall sales.

The regulatory system has the power to shut them down, and the uncertainties and last minu te

changes in regulations make it very difficult: "For bluef in tuna, we have to anticipate in November of

December for the next year; tack le is ordered, made for us, and by the time the regulations come

out--or don't come out, as was the case this year, reverting to last year's regu lations--peop le don't

buy the equipment and I still have to pay for it." He and others have requested from NMFS a buy-

back similar to what was arranged for the New England commercial fishing fleet. Sim ilarly, in Cape

May, tack le shop owners perceive a crisis, and some are considering moving to southern states.

In the Magnuson-Stevens Act’s “National Standard 8,” on fishing communities, there is no

recognition of recreational fishing communities. People interviewed agreed that this was somehow

lost in the rush of getting the 1995 Sus tainable Fisheries Act through. More generally, there is a

tremendous lack of knowledge of the history of these fisheries. And a problem is "that we don't have

receipts" to verify how important the catches have been.

The theme of the importance of learning from the fishermen as well as finding ways to

respect and use "anecdotal data" came up often in our interviews. A few com men ts here will indicate

the nature of a much longer and more detailed discussion. "Th is area is the most productive, sailing

out of Manasquan Inlet, 50 or 100 miles in any direction." "W e know all the canyons, far better than

any scientist." "W e know, but when we get to these meetings it's ignored, it's almost com plete ly

ignored ." On yellowfin tuna: "I started the "chunking" fishery out there, in the canyon. You can't go on

receipts [to identify what is happening with the fishery]; you have to talk to the people who are there

all the time."

The representatives of this sports-fishing com mun ity differ from those who advocate sole ly

catch-and-release fishing, or catch-and-release except for tournaments, as for examp le in Cape

May. Instead, they emp hasize the importance, among their clients, of bringing fish home to eat and

to share with others, and hence the importance of reas onable bag limits to their ability to continue to

serve these clients. The Brielle/Point Pleasant fishermen are concerned that many of the

recreational fishing representations who have tried to be leaders in conservation have gone too far in

the protection ist, rather than conse rvationist, direction. Yes, they agree, there's the need to be

care ful, to protect the fish, but what about livelihoods, the business side? The participan ts frequently

stated that the catch-and-release movement was "spearheaded by an elitist few..." against the

interests of "hard working, facto ry, city people" who came fishing "to fill up their bags with fish and

bring them home for the neighbo rhood." However, even very wealthy people want to bring home

some of the fish they catch.

46

Sports-fishing communities, including those who pay for the privilege of fishing, have

different reasons for fishing. A news release of a report done in conjunction with the American

Sportfishing Association was said to have reduced the recreational fishing experience to

opportunities to catch fish and to tell stories. However, in this port, the majo rity of fishermen also

want to bring some fish home, to eat and share, which has increased the negative impact of sm all

bag limits. One of the large party and charter boat fleets in this port estimates that 85-90% of the

over 4 million people they have taken out fishing over the years "wanted to walk home with fish."

Reducing the experience also marginalizes the interests of people who fish from the banks and

shores as well as on party boats and rentals. It also affects tack le shops: "I work behind the counter

[at a tack le shop], and I hear it everyday. It's not tang ible data, but "tang ible impre ssions ." I hear

someone talking about bluef in tuna: "I don't bother with that any more, I can't take any home to eat."

You can't translate that into tang ible data on fish tack le sales, but you know it makes a differenc e."

Fisheries Profile, Barnegat Light (Long Beach Island), NJ

The fishing port of Long Beach Island is mostly located in the sm all bayside mun icipality of

Barnegat Light, on this long, densely-developed barrier island on the central New Jersey coast. The

commercial fishery has been undergoing a transition from over 20 years of specializing in offshore,

deep-water and distant-water longlining. That tradition remains in the importance of bottom and

pelag ic longline gear (18% of total landed value) and of species such as tilefish, swordfish, and tunas

(including big eye, yellowtail, blackfin, and skipjack in 1998) (Table NJ-LBI). (Handlines are also

used for big eye tuna as well as for bluefish and other species; troll lines for yellowfin tuna). However,

the physical perils of the inlet has kept this a relatively small-boat longliner fleet, and natural and

regulatory changes in the species sought have forced people to look for alternatives. An alternative

developed over the past decade is sea scalloping and the attendant by-catch of angler. Another is

for expansion of the species sought with bottom and pelag ic longlines, including sharks and dogfish

among others. In 1998 the pelag ic longline gear of Long Beach Island caught fully 23 different

species, and bottom gear caught 17 species.

Whether transitional adaptation or old stand-by, the gill-net fisheries of Long Beach Island

are the most substan tial, representing 76% of poundage and 45% of landed value in 1998 (Table

NJ-LBI1). The number of species involved is equally impressive: 61 for the drift gill-nets, including

macke rel, dogfish, flounders, tunas, weakfish, shad, sharks; 23 for the sink gill-nets. In contras t,

otter trawl dragging is minor and only 10 species were landed. Spiny dogfish are a recent focus,

representing over one-third of the total landings in 1998.

47

Tab le NJ-LBI1: Landings by Gear Type, Long Beach Island, NJ, 1998

GEAR TYPE:

LONG BEACH ISLAND, NJ

Dredge, Sea Scallop

Gill Net, Drift

Gill Net, sink

Handline

Longline, Bottom

Longline, Pela gic

Rakes

Otter Trawl

Tro ll Line, Tuna

Unknown

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

5.7 28.6

64.0 34.9

11.8 9.8

0.1 0.1

7.0 6.1

11.2 19.9

0.0 0.2

0.2 0.3

0.0 0.0

0.0 0.0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 10,032,800 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $10,194,400 dollars

Field Observations and Interviews, Barnegat Light, July 1998

Barnegat Light is one of 11 municipalities on Long Beach Island, a large and heavily

developed "barrier beach" island that helps form the seaward boundary of Barnegat Bay, roughly at

the center of New Jerse y's coast. This sm all town (population 681, 1990) with less than one square

mile in area is located on the northern end of the barrier island. The town is named after its famous

lighthouse that guided ships for generations along the New Jersey coast. The name Barnegat

originates from “Barende-gat,” a Dutch name meaning “inlet of break ers." Although the town is

sm all, its fishing com mun ity has been involved in fish harvesting and marketing worldwide and is

active in international tuna and swordfish negotiations via ICCAT (International Comm ission on the

Conservation of Atlan tic Tunas). In July 1998 we visited Barnegat Light and talked with a large

group of fishing families and local com mun ity mem bers in the context of our social and cultural

ana lysis of highly migratory species management (Wilson and McCay 1998).

Barnegat Light is one of New Jers ey’s most important ports. Many mem bers of the East

Coa st’s longline fleet, scallop vessels, and a fleet of inshore gillnetters reside at this port.

Recreational and charter boats also utilize and work from this port. The recreational and charter boat

fishing indus try's landings, percentages, and values were not availa ble at the port or county level.

There are five marinas in Barnegat Light. The two largest docks have 36 full-tim e resident

commercial boats, approxim ately 40 recreational and charter boats, and some transients.

Comm ercial fishing boats work out of these docks year round. The three remaining docks can each

accom mod ate approxim ately 30-35 boats, most of which are recreational boats and charter/ party

boats, with a few headboats. Most of the recreational and sportfishing fishing boats that utilize this

port are here for part of the year, usually from May or June through early October.

One dock is com plete ly occupied by commercial boats, and the owners are also

commercial fishermen. These boats include seven scallopers, ten longliners that fish for tuna,

swordfish, and tilefish, and about nine inshore-fishing gill net boats. All the boats are priva tely owned.

Three offloading stations are part of this dock. During the slow to steady seasons, five or six loca lly

hired full-tim e employees, the boat captain and crew perform the offloading. Add itiona lly, dock hands

are hired loca lly for the busy season. The choice for marketing and sale of the fresh fish can either

be done by the cap tain or by the owners of the dock. The owners of the dock sell some of the catch

48

to fresh fish markets in Boston, Philadelphia, Maryland and New York with the remaining being sold

to local restaurants, retailers, wholesalers or at their own fish market, which is open from April to

October.

The second of the largest docks accommodates ten commercial boats, fifteen charter

boats, and twenty-five recreational vessels. This dock is prim arily an offloading facility and can

accom mod ate up to five vess els for offloading. During offloading, there are two people working the

docks to help the cap tain and crew. The marketing and sales of the fish is done by the boat captain,

who sells the fresh fish to local fish markets.

Comm ercial and recreational fishing have a long tradition here. Fisheries development was

limited until rece ntly, because in order to reach the ocean, boats had to go through Barnegat Inlet,

one of New Jerse y's narrow and often dangerous inlets (the "inlet of breakers"). Con sequently, most

development has been based on beach-oriented tourism. For example, the former fishing

com mun ity of Beach Haven, on Long Beach Island, now has only private boat marinas and

residential condominiums on its waterfro nt. In 1995, the inlet’s fierce curren ts were tamed by an

Army Corps of Engineers project that constructed a south jetty along with a three-quarter- mile

beach, a fishing pier, and bird watching opportunities.

The sm all businesses of Barnegat Light are very reliant on the summer tourist economy and

the year round fishing indus try. This is apparent with all of the summer and beach houses, the

seashore shops and convenience stores along the ma in boulevard to and through Barnegat Light.

The tourist surf shops, souvenir shops, sm all grocery and convenience stores, fish markets, and

even the electronics and repa ir shops advertise goods and service catering to the needs of their

consumers. According to a residen t, the commercial fishing industry (including charter and party

boats) becomes the stalwart econom ic sector for the town in the winter through employing as many

as 150 local people to work at the marinas. (According to the 1990 census, 12.6% of those

employed at Barnegat Light were in fisheries.)

Throughout the interviews and meetings, several citizens and business owners from the

Barnegat Light com mun ity emphasized the role the fishing industry has in sustaining and preserving

their com munity. The marinas are the major source of taxes for the com munity, according to

representatives of the com munity's taxpayers association. Two of the five marinas are prim arily

dependent on the commercial fisheries. An owner of one of the marinas told us that 80% of their

overall income comes from the commercial fishing indus try, for fuel and other services. Although

there is a lot of recreational fishing, the amount of fuel and other services sold to recreational

fishermen is tiny compared with what is sold to commercial fishers. One marina owner said that for

fuel, the ratio is about 40 or 50 commercial to one recreational. In addition, sm all businesses are

able to stay open all year because of the fishing indus try, and this has stabilized the com mun ity so

that it has the lowest crim e rate on the island.

The Barnegat Light port is known for its offshore longliner fishe ry, and a major offshore

pelag ic fishing organization, Bluewater Fishing Association, is headquartered here. In 1993 Barnegat

Light longliners focused on the tunas (yellowfin, bigeye) for most of the year and swordfish part of the

year. A few continued bottom longlining, for tilefish, caught in deep waters of the outer continental

she lf and canyons. The longlining tradition derives from a winter handline and longline fishery for

cod, which lasted through the first part of this century and was prosecuted by Scandinavian

imm igrants among others. It may soon end, with stricter regulations on the large pelag ic fisheries

and a possible government buy-back of longliners.

Barnegat Light is also known as the place where tilefishing was developed. Tilefish were

long known by the old-timers of Barnegat Light but markets were poor. In 1969 a cap tain began

tilefishing again. In the early 1970s he and others cooperated in successfully creating a dom estic

market for tilefish, and this soon emerged as a major focus of the longliners of Barnegat Light, as

49

well as Montauk, New York and, more rece ntly, Point Judith, Rhode Island. The fleets developed

rapid ly, attracting even some of the charter boat fishermen. They diversified into pelag ic longlining,

for swordfish and tunas, as tilefish catch rates diminished. Others moved into sea scalloping.

Although Barnegat Light is ma inly a longliner fishing com munity, there is also a sm all group

of coastal gill-netters plus seven large sea scallopers. And like all ports in the region, it has a

significant recreational fishe ry, with an equally long tradition. The longliner fleet is side by side with

the party boats at one of the docks. Indeed, one of the families is involved in both commercial and

party boat fishing, including offshore "canyon" fishing for highly migratory species (HMS). The HMS

longliner fishery and the scallop fishery are the most important in econom ic and social terms.

Declines in allowable catches, seasons, trip limits, and, for the scallopers, days-at-sea are

threatening the fishing com munity. There are few viable options. According to the mayor, a

commercial fishermen himself, "September 30th, it's doom ed." That was when the 1998 actions

required by the new overfishing requirem ents came into place for HMS and scallopers.

The regulatory system intensifies econom ic marketing problems. The manager of a major

local fish dock said that the management process creates derby fishing, through the opening and

closing of seasons. This means that sm all businesses such as his have troub le keeping their

markets. A good examp le is the shark management plan, which has two periods, one beginning

January 1st, when boats in this area have no access, and the other beginning July 1st, when the

rush for sharks results in a glut on the market. This is also true for weakfish and fluke man agem ent.

Million s of dollars are lost, he said, because of derby fishing.

In terms of loss of revenue due to regulations, one resident commercial fisherman

commented extensive ly on his personal losses due to the 1994 limit of 4,000 pounds per trip for

harvesting mako shark. His com men ts on the econom ic impact of the shark quota being cut in half

were that he lost out on $25,000 in revenue each season. He had other concerns and points to

make, and then noted that in his lifetime, he saw the striped bass taken from the commercial

fishermen; decline in the marlin, the sturgeon, and now serious cutbacks in swordfish, tuna, sharks,

bluefish; and every year more regulations on just about anything the commercial fishermen make a

living on. Another resident added that charter/ party boats also suffer when they can not go out to

fish. The entire fishing com mun ity is impacted. The sentiment of the fishermen seem to be that the

federal government needs to let the “hardworking fishermen” make a living or “pay” the fishermen

every time they are not allowed to fish for one of their target species.

To the old-timers, the nature of the fishery has changed profoundly in part because of the

way regulations are applied, forcing people to specialize in different fisheries, rather than to be able

to combine them or switch from one to the other. Now they are "boxed in," which increases pressure

on fish. For example, the swordfish fishermen have nothing else to turn to; tuna quotas are way

down and the market is poor for some of the tunas; there is a moratorium on tilefishing, hurting the

longliners that moved away from that fishery in recent years; and the fishery for monkfish is very

poor, with tight restrictions coming on line. Two local boats converted from swordfishing to

monkfishing, at great expense, but failed to come in under the deadline for limited entry in that

fishe ry. One option some captains from this port have taken is to go to other countries to fish, but

that is not proving sus tainable because once they have taught people in those countries, they are

typica lly replaced by lower-cost captains.

Another change in the fishery is that crews, at least for the pelag ic longliners and the

scallopers, are less likely than before to come from local communities. Local job opportunities in

construction and the service industries for tourism com pete with working as a deckhand on a fishing

boat, partic ularly with so many restrictions, declining catches, and poor markets, and thus crew

come from other regions, where there are fewer opportunities, such as Nova Sco tia and some of the

southern states.

50

One sign of change in this fishing com mun ity that has intensified in the past 3 to 5 years is

the loss of welders, woodworkers, mechanics, and others needed to support the fisheries. There

used to be a full-tim e welder and a couple of part- time welders in Barnegat Light. The full-tim e

welder has been gone for over 4 years. Local carpenters have been gone for about 6 years.

Whereas it once took a few minutes or maybe an hour or day to get help, now it can take a week.

These services are no longer availa ble in town or even within the region.

Some of the longliners of Barnegat Light have become distant-water operations, going to the

Grand Banks of Newfoundland or even the waters off Greenland, as well as the Caribbean, Braz il,

and other distant fishing grounds. The owner of one major fleet, of 6 longliners, left Barnegat Light

rece ntly. His vess els were among the dozen or so very large longliners that found the trip limit too

restrictive and thus left the Atlan tic Ocean for the Pac ific Ocean.

Others stron gly prefer to work closer to home, to take shorter trips. As one of the captains

said, "I never wanted to be a gypsy, going to Puerto Rico, Haw aii, to fish." His father, one of the

pioneers, explained further, "I never wanted any of our boats to go anywhere but Barnegat

Light....W e have our own troubles, no need to go someplace else to find it, " referring to troubles with

crew, engine break downs, buyers in distant ports. The options of those who resist going to other

ports are far more restricted. The new regulation, closing all areas north of 39 degrees north, Toms

Canyon to the Hague Line, to pelag ic longliner fishing to protect bluef in tuna, is thus very scary to

them. Mem bers of this com mun ity have been very active in the politics of HMS man agem ent,

including ICCAT, and are now (1999-2000) trying to get support for a buy-back program for

longliners unable to continue.

Taking their boats to distant waters, as has the one fleet owner mentioned earlier, remains

an option, but it is very disruptive of fam ily and com mun ity --the loss of that fleet has already had

major impacts on local businesses. Recognition of the links between the pelag ic longline fishery and

the com mun ity itself is a reason why those who run the fishing docks, together with leaders of the

com munity, are struggling to find ways to deal with problems in the fisheries.

Another concern of local residen ts is that decline or demise of the commercial fisheries is

likely to transform the use of the waterfro nt, bringing in condominium development where marinas

are now, an outcome which many long-term residen ts find undesirable. Even more, the fisheries are

perceived as part of the identity of this com munity. Hence, that wou ld be "the end of Barnegat Light

as we know it." For fishing families, the changes are even more significan t. As one said, "The re's no

future in it," and sons and daughters are being discouraged from going into the business.

The Barnegat Light fishing com mun ity is buffeted by regu latory, resource, and market

changes. The recession in Japan has imm ediate and serious repercussions for the longline fishe ry,

seve rely depressing export markets and causing problems in dom estic markets as well, as foreign

suppliers of tunas and swordfish turn to the U.S. market. A local importer said that the percentage of

overseas fish in the dom estic market for swordfish and tunas has gone from 10% to 90% in just a

few years. A representative of the longliner fleet observed that even if there are no changes on

September 30th, "this fishery is gone," unless there are significant advances made at ICCAT and in

the markets.

Another, even larger, regulatory concern is, quite obvio usly, that they are being tightly

regulated when fishers of HMS in other countries are not. A frequent topic of conversation is the

apparent poor support of the U.S. for ICCAT, as for examp le in still allowing quota overages. This

ties in with the issue of whether HMS fisheries in the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlan tic affect the

abundance and condition of fish in the W estern Atlantic. The opinions of the people interviewed, as

well as the position of the Bluewater Fishe rme n's Association, which represents most of the longliner

fishermen of this coast and is headquartered here, is that "it's one pool." The head of the local

taxpa yer's association, hearing the local fishing com mun ity discuss these problems at our interview,

51

asked, "W ith all of these regulations, aren't we making life very difficult while importing the same fish

from other countries? W here is the protection of the fish?"

The longliner fishing com mun ity is defensive about its practices with regards to by-catch. It

is criticized for being "non-selective" and a major source of mor tality for bluef in tuna, marlins,

undersized swordfish, and other species. In turn, the captains note that when they are out there

fishing for two or three weeks at a time, they have a strong econom ic incentive to key in on the best

opportunities for "clean" catches. If they have high by-catches in one area, they move on. The

longliners see themselves as beleaguered whipping boys. They are already very vulne rable to losses

of life and property at sea (viz. the popular new book, "The Perfect Storm ," by Sebastian Junger and

the recent loss of a local boat). They are incre asingly vulne rable to other threats as well.

Barnegat Light fishing com mun ity mem bers interviewed also claimed that the environmental

com mun ity has not adequately invested in the ICCAT management process, instead seeking to

undermine it, relying more on the CITES process. What is needed is concerted effort on all parts to

make the international program for HMS management work properly.

Some recogn ize the need to open up communications with others who fish for the same

species, partic ularly the recreational fishing com mun ity spokespeople. The Recreational Fishing

Alliance, in this area, is trying to get rid of longlining, but so far they have failed in their attempts to

lobby congress for this. They are also concerned that the NMFS allows itself to become politicized in

these battles, and they suggest that the science is under-used because of this. Other problems

mentioned include discrepancies among the states in rules about selling fish, affecting the sense of

inequity that pervades the commercial/recreational dispute.

In closing our meeting with fishers and townspeople in the summer of 1998, one respondent

expressed his feeling about the regulations’ effects on Barnegat Light in saying ,”For years, we have

tried to ma intain our town, our com mun ity and provide for our people, as opposed to other towns that

are more trans it towns. The laws seem to sacrifice the maintenance of our town.”

Fisheries Profile, Other Ocean County

Ocean Cou nty, New Jers ey, covers a large region, ranging from Point Pleasant Beach in the

north to Long Beach Island and beyond to the south. The "Other Ocean" category encompasses the

bayman fisheries in this region, which is made up of barrier islands and a large complex known as

Barnegat Bay. It also includes some offshore fisheries from places other than Long Beach Island

and Point Pleasant. The bayman fisheries are, as always, for blue crabs and for hard clams

(quahogs). Pots are the major way blue crabs are caugh t; clams are caught with rakes, tongs and

"By hand". Fyke nets are minor, for flounders and eels (they are incre asingly restricted by

regulation). NMFS 1998 weighout data on substantial longline and drift gill-net fisheries and on

angler, scallop, tilefish, and bluef in tuna refer to offshore fisheries com parable to and probably

associated with those of Long Beach Island.

Atlant ic County Profile (including Atlant ic City).

Population

According to the 1990 Census for Atlan tic Cou nty, the total population was 224,327. Rural

population comprised 24.2% of the population, although of these only 1.2% lived on farms.

52

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the Atlan tic Coun ty population, the majo rity was white, 76.7%, followed by black at 17.4%.

Individ uals of Hisp anic Orig in comprised 7.2% of the population. There were also sm all numbers of

American Indian and Asian Individuals. Of the Atlan tic Coun ty inhabitants, 94.2% were native. Of

these, 60% were born in New Jers ey. The most prevalent reported ancestries for Atlan tic Coun ty

were German (46,931 people), Italian (46,175 people), and Irish (45,610 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest in Atlan tic Coun ty comprising 33.1% of the total

population. Of the population, 22.9% was under 18 years of age and 14.5% was 65 years of age or

older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 85,123 households in Atlan tic Coun ty 56,576, or 66.5%, were fam ily households. Of the

fam ily households, 72.8% contained married couples and 20.6% were headed by sing le females.

There were, on average, 2.56 persons per household, however 26.6% of the total households were

inhabited by householders living alone.

Of the counties 85,123 occupied housing units, 64.5% were owner occupied and 35.6% were renter

occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 4.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.6%. The

median value of owner occupied housing units was $105,900 and median rent was $503. There

were 21,754 vacant housing units in Atlan tic Cou nty, 11,835 of which were used for seasonal,

recreational, or occasional use.

Educational Trends

Of the persons 25 years of age or older in Atlan tic Cou nty, 72.9% held a high school diploma or

higher and 16.4% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

For Atlan tic Coun ty per capita income was $16,016 and median household income was $33,716. Of

the 218,545 people for whom poverty status was determined, 9.4% were below the poverty line.

Employment

According to the 1990 Census in Atlan tic Cou nty, there were 178,309 persons 16 years of age or

older. Of these individuals, 67.7% were in the labor force. Of these, 99.8% were in the civilian labor

force, of which 5.5% were unemployed. More recent unemployment figures for the area were 8.3%

in 1997 and 8.5% in 1998. There is a seasonal shift in unemployment in this area. For example, in

1998, the unemployment rate was 11.2% in January, from April through October it ranged between

6.4% and 8.6%, and then in January of 1999 it was back up to 10.8%.

Employment Industries

Of the 113,910 employed persons 16 years of age or older, 1.3% were employed in the agriculture,

forestry, and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector was service occupations, except

protective and household, at 22.7% followed by retail at 16.3%. The next largest sectors were

administrative support occupations, including cleric al; entertainment and recreation services;

personal services; sales; and executive, administrative, and managerial occupations. Government

workers comprised 15.2% of the employed persons and there were 6,058 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 8 captains or officers of fishing vessels, all of which were

white males. There were also 57 men, 55 W hite and 2 Black, and 10 women, all white, who

engaged in fishing as an occupation.

Fisheries Profile, Atlant ic City and Other Atlant ic County, N.J.

53

Atlan tic City is better known for casino gambling and its boardwa lk than for its status as a

fishing port. The fishing port is on the backbay side of the city and is almost entire ly given over to

surf clam and ocean quahog dredge fishing (Table NJ-AC1). Atlan tic City has long been a favored

port for this fishery because of ready access to dense beds of clams off the central coast of New

Jers ey. Ocean quahogging has moved to more northern ports, especia lly New Bedford,

Massachusetts, in recent years; it represented only 11% of the value of Atlan tic City's landings in

1998. Other fisheries in Atlan tic City are minor. Gears include sink gill-nets, and handlines, and

bluefish, black sea bass, weakfish, jonah crab, lobster, and conch predominate.

Tab le NJ-AC1: Landings by Gear Type, Atlan tic City, NJ, 1998

GEAR TYPE: ATLA NTIC CITY, NJ LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

99.9 99.7Dredge, SCOQ

Gill Net, Sink 0.0 0.0

Handline 0.0 0.0

Pots & Traps, Conch 0.0 0.0

Pots & Traps, Fish 0.1 0.2

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 37,338,500 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $17,867,000 dollars

Atlan tic Cou nty, like the other coastal New Jersey counties, has numerous sm all-sc ale bay

and estuary fisheries as well. By far the most important for this county is the hard clam (quahog)

fishery (34% of the landings, 70% of the value for "other Atlantic" in 1998), using rakes, tongs, and

"by hand" techniques such as treading. Some of this takes place through clam aquaculture. The

other significant species is the blue crab, harvested with pots and dredges (50.5% landings, 25%

value). Haul seines, fyke nets, gill nets, handlines, eel pots, and turtle traps are also used for white

perch, menhaden, American shad, and many other bay and tidal river species.

Field Observations and Interviews, Atlant ic City, NJ, July 1999

Atlan tic City is on a barrier beach island, once known for its boardwa lk and Miss America

pageant and now best known for its casino gambling. On the backbay side of Atlan tic City can be

found commercial fishing enterprises, almost entire ly for surf clamming and ocean quahogging.

Some clam docks are on an inlet reached by Rhode Island Avenue, in an area which has rece ntly

been redeveloped with up-s cale townhouses known as Gard ner's Basin. It is zoned "marine

com mercial."4 Maryland Avenue runs along a second inlet, the site of another large clam dock, a

company that sells bait, tack le and ice, a deep sea and wreck charter boat, a number of run-down

buildings and vacant lots, and a restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch. Across this inlet is low-

income housing and a playground. The resident population is predom inate ly Black American. Very

few mem bers of the fishing industry live here. A marina in the area is a state marina that is leased

and operated by one of the casino owners. There is an area zoned "commercial marine" in nearby

West Atlan tic City, but the only fishing activity evident was a sm all bait and tack le shop and a marine

repa ir shop.

4 Marine Commercial is a very broad category and includes all of the following uses: Home Occupations, Rectories,

Single Family Detached and Attached, Dry Good Stores, Gift, Novelty & Souvenir, Newspaper and Magazine Stands, Fish and Seafood Stores, Outdoor Restaurants, Restaurants (excluding dance and entertainment), Home Occupation Offices, Gasoline/Diesel, Marine Craft & Accessories Sales & Services and Parking.

54

Clam Docks

W e talked with the owner of one of the clam docks, which abuts a fairly new townhouse

developmen t. He owns 6 clam boats here in Atlan tic City and 6 in Oceanside, Long Island (which

work in the New York state surf clam fishery). Five of the 6 boats in Atlan tic City are currently

working boats. The sixth is tied up "due to conso lidation." The informant started out as a boat

captain, bought his own boat, and then began to buy up other boats, doing very well. At the peak he

had 16 boats, which he consolidated into 6 because of the 1990 Amendment 8 of the federal Surf

Clam and Ocean Quahog management plan, which created individual trans ferable quotas and

allowed holders of quotas to use any boats they wished. (The State of New Jersey also has limited

entry management of the surf clam fishery and has allowed some degree of “consolidation”).

He was not in favor of Amendment 8 when it was instituted because he thought that jobs

wou ld be lost. However he has altered his opinion because this did not happen, at least at his

com pany. The clam boats all still have the same captains and crews, and no one lost their job. The

informant has worked with the same number of people for the last 10 or 12 years. Further, since the

ame ndm ent, clamm ers are no longer racing to get clams because the boats are safer and “the

people are better”. Although they used to catch more clams before, the quality is now higher.

According to another inform ant, a truck dispatcher and former clamm er, each boat uses a 4-

5 man crew, including the captain. On the dock 5 full-timers, and an extra forklifter when necessary,

are always working. This particular fishery has 4 truck bays and is able to unload 2 boats at the same

time. The com pany's boats only go for "clams" (that is, surf clams) now due to more favo rable

economics. As stated by this inform ant, "quahog" (or ocean quahog) is “like a dirty word”right now –

it is necessary to go much further out to sea to acquire quahogs, which creates wear and tear on the

boats, for less money than for surf clams. Further, while it is only possible to harvest 2 to 3 cages of

quahogs an hour, 10 to 12 cages of surf clams can be collected in the same amount of time, for the

same amount of money, while only venturing out 20 miles. Some independent boats are unloaded at

this dock, including quahog boats.

The two major clam docks in Atlan tic City both have close ownersh ip ties to companies

involved in shucking and further processing. However, the company visited also sells to 8 other

companies. (There are nine companies which buy surf clams and/or ocean quahogs, as well as

others which purchase shucked clams for further processing). Each company has a preference as to

what kind of clams they want. Therefore much effort is given to trying to catch the right kind of clams

at the right time. The companies are located along the east coast, from New Bedford, MA, to

Norfolk, VA.. Atlan tic City, Point Pleasant, and New Bedford are now the major offloading ports for

the indus try.

The dockworke rs work in 2 shifts and may only work from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. due to a city

ordinance. The ordinance went into effect a few years back due to the com plaints of local

townhouse residen ts about the noise. Prior to the ordinance, the dockworke rs wou ld work all the

time. According to an inform ant, when the townhouses were built in 1994 they replaced a slum,

where half of the houses should have been condemned and the street was unsafe at night.

Apart from the noise com plaint, the informant is not aware of any tensions with the larger

com munity. He said that one man who moved in claimed he was told that a “green park” was going

to be put in across the street. However, he does not think that the fishery is in danger of losing its

space; it has been a commercial dock “forever”. The dock was used for many types of fishing, then

vacated for many years when the fishing industry collapsed, and then bought in 1983 or 1985 for

clamming.

The two inform ants live 35 miles away in the Barnegat Bay town of Man ahawkin along with

many of the other employees. They are all white males, between the ages of 30 and 60 and have

55

been with the company for a long time. According to one of the inform ants there is good job security

at the dock; he has been working there since 1984. The owners’ children have also worked there,

right out of high school.

On the boats, the men are paid on a share per bushel basis. The percentage depends on

whether the boat-owners are working shares of the quota which they own or ones which they have

leased from others (these shares are represented by tags which are put on the 32-bushel steel

cages which hold the surf clams or ocean quahogs). If leased, then the captains, mates, and

deckhands get a smaller percentage of the landed value of the clams. Further, how often boats go

out depends on the market, which had been partic ularly slow in the summer of 1999. At this

commercial dock the captains bas ically work to fill orders. There is an in-shore season from October

to May 31, in New Jersey state waters. “Offshore” clamming (in federal waters), is done year round.

Employees of the dock visited do not belong to any of the fishing associations. There used

to be a bar/hangout nearby, but not anymore. They bring in coffee from a convenience store in the

town of Brigantine, on the way from Manahawkin.

A second clam dock in Atlan tic City has six boats, all around 79' in length. Each boat has a

crew of 3 who are all paid by share per bushel, according to an informant at the dock. This man,

who is now working for his third fishe ry, started clamming in 1989 and lives in Tuckahoe, NJ. He said

that the other fishermen at his current fishe ry, all white males, live in Cape May, Philadelphia,

Tuckahoe, and Tuckerton.

Bar\han gout: He said the fishermen go to a local bar in Brigantine.

Gard ner’s Basin

Gardner’s Bas in is just adjacent to the clam docks off North Rhode Island Avenue. It is

referred to as an histo ric area in literature regarding Atlan tic City, and is now large ly devoted to

recreation and tourism. Located there are also a new aquarium, the Ocean Life Center, and

amphitheater; a sm all amusement area (rides); pleasure boat slips; a cruise com pany; a party boat;

an antique store; and two cafes.

The structure of a museum called The Lobster Shanty was built in about 1976 by a former

fisherman as a place to build his lobster traps and store his equipm ent. He was born in Atlan tic City,

gained fishing experience in New Bedford, and then returned to Atlan tic City. Since he was injured in

1996, he has turned the Lobster Shanty into a fishe rman’s museum featuring old photographs and

news clippings, stuffed trop0hy fish, old equipm ent, and a “lighthouse” that he is making outside from

clam she lls that are decorated by children who visit. The former fisherman also talks to any visitor

who wants to hear about the fishing industry in Atlan tic City and elsewhere, since he has worked in

many ports and fisheries up and down the eastern seaboard.

The city owns the land on which the building stands, and he leases it from the city. He

claim s that the museum is non-pro fit, though it is unclear whether it is registered as non-pro fit or the

informant refers to it as non-pro fit because it makes no money. He says he gets 5,000 visitors a

year, and that this is the only comm emorative fishing facility in the city.

There are also 6 black sea bass fishermen who tie up at this dock. They go out at 9 a.m.

and come in at 1 p.m.. Our informant says they off-load at one location but then drive their catches

down to another place to sell them. The informant said their ethn ic backgrounds is Irish or perhaps

English-- he is of German descent-- and that all of them have second jobs.

Relationships with the Larger Comm unity and the New Jersey Fresh Seafood Festival

56

One informant said that clamming is the second biggest industry in Atlan tic City, after the

casinos, and yet the city does not support the fishing indus try: “They have no time for the sm all fries.”

He continued by stating, “The quality of life is bad here. They don ’t care. They only care about the

gam blers.”

The New Jersey Fresh seafood festiv al, of which a large corporation was the major sponsor,

was at Gardner’s Bas in on June 12-13, 1999 (second weekend in June). At the Atlan tic City

Chamber of Comm erce one staff member said that this is the 10th anniversary of the festiv al. He

made a point to emp hasize that the festival generates funds that in part go for developing artificial

reefs. He said that there are no commercial fishers involved in the vending at the festival and none

of the exhibits are designed around the social or econom ic aspec ts of fishing.

Cape May County Profile (includes Lower Township, Middle Township, Wildwood, and Sea

Isle City)

Population

According to the 1990 Census for Cape May Cou nty, the population was 95,089. Females

outnumbered males by 3.9%. The rural population comprised 33.3% of the total population,

however only 1.4% of the rural population lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

The largest racial group for Cape May Coun ty was White, at 92.6%, followed by Black at 5.6%.

There were sm all numbers of American Indian and Asian individuals. The Hisp anic population was

also sm all, 2.0% of the total population. Of the population from Cape May Coun ty 97.4% were

native born. Of those native born, 46.6% were born in New Jers ey. The most prevalent ancestries

reported for the county were German (29,266 people); Irish (28,231 people); and English (16,022

people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest comprising 29.0% of the total population. Of the

total population, 22.9% were younger than 18 years of age and 20.1% were 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 37,856 total households in Cape May Cou nty, 67.8% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 80.2% contained couples and 15.1% were headed by sing le females. There was an

average of 2.44 persons per household, however 27.5% of the total households were occupied by

householders living alone.

Of the counties 85,537 total housing units, 37,856 were occupied. Of the occupied housing units,

72.0% were owner occupied and 28.0% were renter occupied. Of the 47,681 vacant housing units

36,448, or 76.4%, were used for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. Homeowner vacancy

rate was 5.3% and rental vacancy rate was 37.6%. Median value of owner occupied units was

$112,800 and median rent was $474.

Educational Trends

According to the 1990 Census, 74.0% of the population held a high school diploma or higher and

17.2% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

For Cape May Coun ty per capita income was $15,536 and median household income was $30,435.

Of the 92,271 people for whom poverty status was determined in 1989, 8.3% were below the poverty

line.

57

Employment

The county had 76,104 persons 16 years of age or older, according to the 1990 Census. Of these

individuals, 45,452, or 59.7%, were in the labor force. Of the individ uals in the labor force, 97.0%

were in the civilian labor force, of which 7.5% were unemployed. More recent unemployment figures

for the area were 8.3% for 1997 and 8.5% for 1998. This area shows a seasonal shift in

unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment for January was 11.2%, ranged from 6.4% to

8.6% for April through October, and was back up to 10.8% in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 40,777 persons 16 years of age or older, 2.1% were in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries

industries sector. The largest sector was retail, at 19.4%, followed by service occupations, except

protective and household, at 15.9%. The next largest sectors were administrative support

occupations; sales; executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; professional specialty

occupations; and precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations. Government workers

comprised 20.2% of the employed population and there were 3,290 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

The Census Bureau listed 82 captains or officers of fishing vessels, all white men, for Cape May

Coun ty in 1990. There were also 274 men, 262 were W hite and 12 were Black, and 1 white woman

who engaged in fishing as an occupation.

Fisheries Profile, Cape May, NJ

Cape May is New Jerse y's largest commercial fishing port in terms of landings and value.

When combined with neighboring Wildwood (the fishing port is often referred to as "Cape

May/W ildwood"), its landings exceeded 93 million lbs., worth over $29 million in 1998.

Draggers, or vess els using bottom otter trawls, account for 69% of Cape May's landings and

70% of its value (Table NJ-CM1 ). Most are used for a wide variety of finfish species (56). Some are

also used for scallops; Cape May has a long history of combined or alternating fin-fishing and

scalloping. Squ id is very important: In 1998 17% of Cape May's landed value came from Illex squ id

and another 22% from Loligo squ id (Table NJ-CM2 ). Much of the squ id is processed loca lly as is

Atlan tic macke rel, caught with draggers and midwater pair trawls. Summer flounder has been a

major species but regulations have seve rely reduced catches (4% landed value in 1998). Scup is

another dragger-caught species of histo ric importance in Cape May; in 1998 it represented 6% of

landed value. Cape May is also the home of one of the very few vess els allowed to use purse

seines for bluef in tuna in U.S. waters; this vessel lands its catch in Gloucester, MA. The only purse

seine landings in Cape May in 1998 were for menhaden, using smaller vessels. Fishing for large

pelagics is also done with longlines and troll lines.

Although sea scallop management measures have reduced opportunities for many Cape

May fishermen, scalloping remains important. In addition to scalloping with otter trawls, scallop

dredges are used, accounting for 15% of the total value of Cape May's landings in 1998. Angler

(monkfish) are caught with scallop dredges as well as gill-nets, otter trawls, and scallop otter trawls

(1.8% of landed value). Dogfish catches are now relatively sm all (0.3% of total landings in 1998).

58

Tab le NJ-CM1: Landings by Gear Type, Cape May, NJ, 1998

GEAR TYPE: CAPE MAY, NJ

Unknown

Handline

Longline, Pela gic

Otter Tra wl, Fish

Otter Tra wl, Scallop

Tro ll Line, Tuna

Gill Net, Sink

Gill Net, Drift

Purse Seine, Other

Purse Seine, Menhaden

Dredge, Scallop

Menhaden Trawl

Pots & Traps, fish

Pots & Traps, Conch

Pots & Traps, Lobster Offshore

Dredge, Crab

Dredge, SCOQ

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

0.0 0.0

0.0 0.3

68.9 61.9

0.5 7.7

0.0 0.0

0.2 0.5

0.1 0.1

0.0 0.0

23.9 6.7

0.9 15.4

3.4 0.6

0.1 0.7

0.1 0.4

0.2 2.6

0.1 0.3

1.4 2.9

0.0 0.0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 87,244,700 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $25,757,200 dollars

Tab le NJ-CM2: Landings by Major Species, Cape May, NJ, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES: CAPE MAY, NJ LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

2.9 1.0Atlan tic Herring

Summer Flounder 0.9 3.9

Lobster 0.2 2.5

Atlan tic Mackerel 20.9 8.2

Menhaden 24.1 6.8

Sea Scallop 1.1 21.9

Scup 1.7 6.1

Squid, Illex 34.1 16.9

Squid, Loligo 8.3 22.0

Surf Clam 1.4 2.9

Black Sea Bass 0.4 2.2

Number of Species: 69

Other species of MAFMC interest, by percentage of total value, 1998: Bluefish (0.2), Butterfish (0.5),

Smooth dogfish (0.0), Spiny dogfish (0.1), Tilefish (0.0).

Field Observations and Interviews, Cape May (Lower Tow nship ), NJ, June 1999

Comm ercial and recreational fishing docks are scattered around Cape May or, more

properly, Lower Township, but centered in an area known as Ocean Drive, a road which leaves the

ma in highway and crosses the marshes toward Wildwood, and Sche llenger 's Landing, just over a

large bridge that conne cts the mainland with the center of Cape May and its beaches.

59

Our visit to Cape May reinforced what we later learned at other ports in the Mid-Atlan tic

region, that commercial fishing businesses and uses of the waterfront are lower priority than

recreational and resort-oriented uses within the com munity. For example, the 1988 "harborfront

enhan cem ent" master plan and other docum ents emp hasize "full-service" recreational marinas as

"...the most econom ically viable marina option to both the investor and the com mun ity at large." The

local Chamber of Comm erce carries brochures for local charter and party boat and recreational

marinas, as well as restaurants, hote ls and bed-and-breakfast accommodations, etc. They cou ld not

come up with any information on commercial fishing in Cape May, despite the fact that this is the

largest fishing port in New Jersey and one of the largest on the Atlan tic seaboard. For this reason,

we start with an examination of planning and zoning.

Planning and Zoning

Although the fishing port is known as Cape May, in fact it is not located in the city of Cape

May but rather in neighboring "Lower Town ship," part of Cape May Cou nty. The Lower Tow nsh ip

planning director stated that the constant association of Cape May and the fishing industry is a sore

spot for Lower Tow nsh ip because Lower Tow nsh ip wou ld like to be identified with the fishing

com munity. He said that people realize fishing is an econom ic boon to the area and that they feel

pretty positive about it. He said there are only a few conflicts with people who live near the boats.

The planner said that most conflicts over land use by the fishing industry occur when new

residential developmen ts are sited next to fishing areas. The new residen ts com plain about noise

and claim that the piling up of gear is uns ightly. He mentioned one example, new condos not far

from Schelleng er’s Landing, where a combination fish market, dock, and restaurant and a number of

large fishing boats are found.

Private recreational boating and fishing marinas are said to be a powerful political force in

the township. In 1989 the planner interviewed said he conducted a study to site a pub lic boat ramp.

Planning board mem bers reacted negatively to this proposal to provide free pub lic access when

some of the private marinas had launching ramps where people without slips cou ld pay for boat

launching. Although he worked with the Army Corps of Engineers and the state DEP to develop

plans for five possible sites, and the state itself developed plans for another site, nothing has

happened.

Regarding land use conflicts vis a vis wetlands, especia lly along Ocean Drive, the informant

said there has not been a significant amount of conflict, even though there have been several

expansions of existing facilities. For example, at one particular Marina, which already had 440 slips

(according to manager of a bait and tack le shop at the marina) 380 more slips are being added, but

no wetlands are being converted for this. All that was needed to add the slips was a waterfront

development perm it from the DEP, local permits, and a site plan. The parking lot was already filled in

when the wetlands act went into effect in 1972. One large clamming business, (see below),

expanded land-wise when processing was added 6 years ago, but once again, the land used was

already filled in, according to our inform ant.

Schelleng er’s Landing, just over the bridge leading to the city of Cape May, is zoned “marine

general business” with allowance for expansion of the marine industrial character. A large restaura nt­

fish market-packing dock complex has been expanding. It is a very popular place for tourists, who

like to look at the fishing boats while they are eating lunch or dinner. Its large parking lot was once

the site of another bar and restaura nt. W e were unable to talk with anyone at this complex. The

planner estimated that 500 people work in the com pany’s fishing, processing, fresh fish market and

restaurant enterprises.

Next to that complex is a marine railwa y, which our informant said might have been

converted to condos if it were not for the foun der’s grandson, who modernized in order to be able to

60

work on steel boats. According to our inform ant, the foun der’s grandson was afra id that tourists

wou ld be annoyed by his business, but it turns out that they love to watch him power-washing the

boats from the porch of the restaurant next door. Other marine-related businesses in and around

the landing include two recreational marinas, two marine suppliers, two bait and tack le shops, a

wha le research center, and a "ma rlin and tuna club." Also there are a pizza shop, a mo tel, a bar, a

wildlife art galler y, an antique store, two restaurants, and a gasoline station. Some cater to people in

the fishing industry and some do not.

Further expansion of the fishing indus try, commercial or recreational, is limited by the high

cost of land near the waterfro nt. According to our inform ant, a 150’ x 136’ non-waterfront plot, seen

on the planning map, that was being offered for $350,000 five or six years ago, wou ld go for

$400,000 now. As he put it, “That’s awfu lly expensive to be used to store your fishing equipm ent.”

Another informant pointed to vacant buildings nearby, which had been intended for a deli and an

antique store. Real estate costs proved too high for businesses like these. Even though there is

considerable car and boat traffic at the landing, demand for homes is high. Many of the houses were

built with use variances.

Lower Tow nsh ip has three "marine developmen t" zones, located along Ocean Drive at Two

Mile Landing and at Shaw Island and Cresse Island adjacent to Wildwood Crest. These areas are

currently used by recreational boats. Across from Shaw I. is a new developmen t, where 325 new

slips are being put in. It is interesting to note that it was originally planned as a condominium

development but now appears to be ma inly a marina.

There is also a place off Rich ards on’s Road, adjacent to Rte. 47, where four fishing boats

are docked at a sm all service building. It does not appear as “marine developmen t” on the zoning

map, however, our informant knows of it. A woman who lives near where the boats are docked

stated that the man who mostly uses them is an elder ly fisherman. One of the boats that the elder ly

fisherman uses is clearly a lobster boat and one resembles a crabber, which is old army green. Two

other boats are also docked here.

Cape May City does have several areas with zoning "uses by right" that include fishing-

related uses such as piers, launching ramps, boat building and repair, retailing of goods and

services oriented to marine or recreational activit y, and so forth. None of these apparen tly hosts

commercial fishing businesses, nor does an area zoned "mixed use." It appears that by fishing what

is meant in zoning is recreational fishing. A woman in the zoning office said that they do not deal at

all with commercial fishing, at least not in the 12 years she has worked there.

There has been a fair amount of friction between the recreational and commercial

fishermen, including name-calling, some of which has even been printed in the newspaper.

However, some commercial boats are found amongst the various marinas. For example, a lobster

boat was docked next to a marina on Shore Drive. Like many vess els in this area, it was registered

in Philadelphia. Offshore lobstering is an important fishery even this far south; the owner of this boat

repo rtedly moved here rece ntly and is doing very well. At another marina, a sm all commercial vessel

pulled up to refuel; the men on board had come down from Port Nor ris and were on their way out to

fish with pots for conch. The ir season was just beginning.

W e visited a complex on a saltwater creek (Mill Creek) that includes a marina, bait and

tackle, marine supply, charter boats. The marina itself is sm all, about 28 slips. Access to this

particular area is now difficult for large vess els because of silting, due to the canal built between

Cape May and the mainland. (Saltwater intrusion of the water supply is another problem linked to the

canal). The marina is one of four owned by the owner of several party boats. Another of the

marinas owned by this person has over 400 slips and is still building; it caters exc lusive ly to

recreational boats.

61

Fishing-Related Businesses:

Schelleng er’s Landing is the most visible center of fishing in the Cape May area. A large

restaurant-fish market-packing dock complex is a very popular place for tourists, who like to look at

the fishing boats while they are eating lunch or dinner. Its parking lot was once the site of another

bar and restaura nt. W e were unable to talk with anyone at this complex. The planner estimated that

500 people work in the com pany’s fishing, processing, fresh fish market and restaurant enterprises.

At the time of our visit, there were 13 fin-fishing, lobstering, and other fishing vess els docked at

various sites around the landing, several of which came from Hampton, Virgin ia and North Carolina

ports. Cape May has long been used by fishermen from other states.

Ocean Drive is the location of several important commercial fishing businesses. The first is

a company with a long history in the area, as a who lesa le distributor, exporter, and processor. The

com pany's “The focus for the past 18-20 years has been on high volume, low value species” such

as macke rel, herring, squ id and menhaden, according to the person we interviewed, who has been

with the company for 25 years. They also deal with a little of everything else.

He said that over the last 15 years there has not been much change within the company

except the growth of its processing capacity, ma inly within the last five years. The company

distributes and exports more than it processes. The processing that does occur involves turning

squ id into calamari. Otherwise, they check for species, size and qua lity, and freeze and pack for the

market. Our informant said they do very little local business, and that which they do is only in

wholesaling. Expor ts to foreign countries (all frozen) constitute 50% to 60% of their business. He

said that the countries vary from year to year, depending on the market. The dom estic market is

40% to 50% of the business. Of that, 15% to 20% is made up of fresh fish that goes to Philadelphia,

New York, Boston and the Carolinas. The rest is frozen and sent to other processors and distributors

throughout the country.

The company has expanded by taking over the Two Mile Landing dock, which is across a

50-cent toll bridge on the way to Wildwood. It is being upgraded and will be used for large, long-

range freezer trawlers and freighter vess els carrying mackerel and herring. The company owns only

a half share in two boats. It works almost exc lusive ly with independents, most of who have been

dealing with the company "for genera tions.” He mentioned one example, a local fam ily of Swedish

background. Most of the boats are loca l, though a few come from the South and from New

England.

Fourteen boats work with this company full-time. They are all trawlers, though a couple of

boats have the capac ity to purse seine as well. All of the boats dock at this com pany, which provides

them with fuel, ice and elec tricity. The boats are 85’ to 145’ in size and generally use 3- to 5-man

crews except the freezer boats, which have 8 to 9 crew members. They fish as far east as offshore

Mass achus etts and as far south as North Carolina. They go 40 to 100 miles offshore to as much as

300 fathoms. Our informant said that they are just beginning the Illex squ id season, and are also

bringing in menhaden.

The company has 75 to 80 employees who are not on the boats. He said they live in towns

from Cape May to Bridgeton. The ethn ic make-up is approxim ately 40% Hispanic, 40% white and

20% Asian, black, and other. Most of the Hispanics have been with the company a long time and live

in Bridgeton, NJ. He also estimated that 65% to 70% of the workers are male.

This company has been on its property since 1954 and has had some problems with

physical expansion due to laws governing conversion of the surrounding wetlands. Our informant

said that New Jersey is very strict about this, much more so than most states. He said this was one

reason they decided to acquire the dock at Two Mile Landing.

62

Two Mile Landing has a commercial dock, being upgraded. There is a pleasure boat

marina next to this dock, as well as a para-sailing facility and a company that charters pleasure trips.

There are also 2 restaura nts at the landing, one quite large. An informant at the larger restaurant

said that most of their fish and seafood that they serve is local and that the chef buys it from local

wholesalers. The local types that they get are flounder, scallops, clams, swordfish, tuna, who le

lobsters and mako shark. The crabs they get are from Maryland, the lobster tails are from New

Zealand, and the salmon is from Norway. She also mentioned that local people sometimes try to sell

to the restaurant direc tly, but that they “only buy from legitimate places.”

W e interviewed the owners of a neighboring and also large seafood com pany. It has a retail

store and a processing facto ry. The permanent staff numbers about 20 people, mostly loca l, six to

eight of whom work in the retail store/fish market. The rest work in the processing plant. At the time

of our visit there were 35 or 40 contract laborers (mostly "Vietnam ese") brought in from Philadelphia,

as well as four or five African-Americans. The contract laborers had been working consistently for a

month, packaging squid, the dominant species being processed here in recent times.

One of the owners said that handling squ id as they were was not profitable, not even a

"stopgap mea sure," but the regulations were forcing them to any markets they could. The ir

traditional dominant markets are squid, flounder, sea bass, porgies and clams/quahogs.

The owners said that they have lost two thirds of their gross volume in the last eight years

due to regulations. They said that they can't com pete with the prices of the imported, processed

produc t. They believe that other countries are making big money at their expense. They were

rece ntly given an extra squ id quota in exchange for their cooperation on a change in the season

opening for squid. They accepted the quota but said that now their boats are having a problem

bringing in the quota because of the poor timing. They complained about how limited their boats

have become by the regulations that force them to fish only for certa in species in very limited

windows of opportun ity.

Fifteen boats work for this com pany. Dealing with the declining volume problem by

increasing the number of boats wou ld mean having "...to steal them from other dealers or from other

states who are themselves limited." They emphasized that no one is willing to risk building another

boat with such a limited, uns table future for the industry looming overhead. The company had

rece ntly built a couple of large-ca pacity freezers and has expanded its dock over the years.

A third commercial fishing business in the Ocean Drive area owns one surf clam/ocean

quahog vess el, a freezer trawler, 7 wet boats and 2 refrigerated sea water vessels. Our first

inform ant, who runs the dock, sais that they go for both clams and fin fish, however rece ntly they

have been bringing in ma inly squ id and macke rel. As noted in The New York Times, August 10,

1997, the owner of this company �. They also own a freezer trawler, 7 wet boats and 2 refrigerated

sea water vessels. Our first inform ant, who runs the dock, said that they go for both clams and fin

fish, however rece ntly they have been bringing in ma inly squ id and macke rel. As noted in The New

York Times, August 10, 1997, the owner of this company "is the only one to work in 7 of the state's

top 12 fisheries: clams, squid, scallops, flounder, menhaden, porg ie and mac kerel." The only

fisheries his boats do not engage in are long-lining for tuna and pot fishing.

The company also off-loads about 8 independent boats and has another clam offloading

dock in Point Pleasant. According to its owner, at this facility there are 15 shore employees,

approxim ately 20 seasonal packers, and 45 crew on the boats. He tries to keep the crews of the

boats sm all in size, for effic iency, but this increases the problem of finding appropriate, trained

workers. The boats range in size from 75’ to 125’ and take crews of 4 to 7. Our first informant said

that they have had to hire a number of transients from Virgin ia (for scalloping) and Mass achus etts

because it has been getting more difficult to find local workers for the jobs. He added that

sometimes the boats cannot go out because they do not have enough properly trained crew

63

members. Crews are paid by shares, which he said vary. Typical shares are 60/40 and 55/45, boat

to crew.

This seafood businessman has been involved in several leade rship positions and

organizations. Together with representatives of other Cape May/Wildwood businesses, he started

and suppo rts the Cape May Seafood Association, which has a director and a budget of about

$100,000 a year. It has had problems, including competition with a group called Families and

Friends of the Fishermen, which started up early in the 1990s in the wake of ITQs as well as

conflicts over horseshoe crabs and menhaden fishing. He rece ntly helped start a state-wide

organization, the Garden State Seafood Association, which employs a professional lobbyist in the

state cap ital. He has also been involved in collaborative research among indus try, unive rsity, and

government to improve knowledge about surf clam and ocean quahog stock asses sme nts and gear

selectivity for scup and squ id fisheries.

According to the owner, this business has had little experience with land-use conflict

because it is far removed from the ma in tourist areas of Cape May. It has been at this location since

1976 and owns 10 acres. However, there have been com plaints about tractor trailers and

equipment out in the yard creating an eyesore. “If Lower Tow nsh ip enforced the regulations, we

wou ld be in troub le for all the s___ lying around .” He said he thinks many people consider the

fishing companies “scenic ,” but that they are “neither sign ifican tly supported by nor discouraged by

local policies.”

Regarding the study of fishing communities, the owner was very cynical, stating that it is

conducted by the council just to placate communities. He says he wants to help man agem ent, but

that management is working backwards. He thinks that the only things that constitute the pub lic good

vis a vis fishing are preserving biodivers ity and keeping seafood affo rdab le for people. He thinks the

most important question for management is whether it should be done by input con trols (e.g., time

and gear man agem ent) or output con trols (e.g., ITQs).

A large sea clam facility is located on Ocean Drive across from two of the finfish processing

companies described above. It bought out another large company in 1994. Until about 1992 this

facility was used to steam shuck surf clams and ocean quahogs (mainly the latter), shipping the

shucked mea ts elsewhere for cooking and canning or freezing. It also owned and operated a fleet of

vessels. It was expanded and redesigned in 1992 to be a full-scale shucking and processing facility,

the ultimate in vertical integration, but engineering problems combined with wastewater management

problems led to abandonment of shucking. In 1994 the parent company sold this plant to another

com pany, which also purchased the vess els and some of the ITQ held. The plant now buys

shucked meat from other plants and processes ocean quahogs and surf clams in various forms and

has begun to diversify into other food products. It now employs about 130 persons in a highly

automated process, and the workers are prim arily from the local region Two of its five vess els are

not being used for clamming; the other three are contracted out to others in the indus try.

Party Boats, Charters and Whale-Watching

Cape May has a substantial recreational fishe ry, both “for-hire” and private boat. W e

observed four party boats at one of the marinas. Two were specializing in 8 hour trips for black sea

bass and flounder, and two were doing 4 hour trips "for just about anything" during our visit in early

June, 1999. "Canyon" fishing is also important here, involving long trips out to the waters of

Baltimore canyon for pelagics. (The owner of one of the recreational marinas developed a

condominium com mun ity specifica lly for private boat owners and customers of charter boats who

identify themselves as "canyon" fishers).

W hale watching has emerged as a prof itable alternative or adjunct to recreational fishing

charters. The naturalist/tour guide on a catamaran run by a wha le watching enterprise mentioned

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that her fam ily owns the center, and her father used to run a party boat out of Cape May. She said

that he decided to get into wha le watching because he thought that he wou ld make more money at

it, and the business has proven to be very successful. The wha le watches run from April 15 – Dec. 1.

The boat holds 150 people, and she says they are full or nearly full most of the time. They not only

search out whales but also dolphins (she said there are 2,000 dolphins in the area during the

summ er).

Her boyfriend also owns a 55-foot charter boat. She says that despite the regulations and

diminished fish stocks, sport fishing out of Cape May is great because of all the nearby canyons and

the different varieties of fish including marlin, shark, tuna, mahi mahi, and some sailfish. She says

they mostly do tag and release from her boyfr iend’s boat. It is her feeling that the regulations are

harsher for the charters than for the commercial fishermen.

On the dock there was a group of charter captains drinking beer who were not that

interested in talking about the fishing com munity, but one did say that the people who charter their

boats are mostly from Philadelphia.

Our informant also said that there has been some antagonism between the commercial

fishermen and the sport fishermen. She did say that she has a good relatio nsh ip with some of the

bunker fishermen, who sometimes tell her where the bunker are running to help her locate whales

(whales eat bunker). She also mentioned a story about some ducks she used to feed at the docks.

She became very attached to them over time and then all of a sudden they disappeared. She

suspe cts that the Vietnamese fishermen who work on one of the boats docked at Schelleng er’s

Landing killed them and ate them. She is really upset about it.

She said that because of the regulations, fish stocks have been increasing in Delaware Bay.

She said that every charter boat and party boat had been fishing in the bay that day, which was June

8th.

She said that most of the fishermen she knows live in Cape May and Wildwood, though

some fisherman live as far as one hour north. She said that it is not that expensive to live in Cape

May and Wildwood if you are there year-round. She said that while you have to pay $5,000 for a 2-

bedroom apartment for the period between June and Septemb er, you only have to pay $500-

$600/m onth for the same apartment for the remainder of the year. She also mentioned that there

are a lot of family-oriented fishing businesses in the area. “We want it that way. W hy wou ld we want

anyone else?”

Fishing and the Larger Comm unity

A fishe rman’s memorial is at the end of Missouri Ave. (off of Pittsburgh Ave.). It portrays a woman

and a child looking out to sea. A fishermen's wives organization, now defunc t, played a major role in

creating this memorial. The inscription says,

“Dedicated to the fishermen lost at sea - 1988

He hushed the storm to a gentle breeze,

And the billows of the sea were stilled”

There is also a bronze plaque for fishermen lost at sea on the Washington St. pedestrian ma ll.

A Seafood Festival in Cape May had been moribund for a while until it was taken over by the

Chamber of Comm erce in the mid-1990s. When asked whether the commercial fishers in the area

had been involved in organizing or supporting the seafood festiv al, a representative of the Chamber

of Comm erce said that there is a "non-existent relatio nsh ip between us and them. W e tried, they

tried, but it never worked out." One of the seafood company owners interviewed expressed concern

65

that such a festival was run to display commercial fishers as a "peep show" for the public, or for

preserving some fabricated sense of com mun ity heritage, rather than to prom ote specific products.

Besides, he said, fishers need to work for a living and cannot take time for these festivals.

W e talked with quite a few people about how the fishing industry conne cts to the larger

com munity. One, who works at a large seafood com pany, said that as far as a connection with the

larger com mun ity is concerned, the fishing industry has “alwa ys been a very important and integral

part of the com mun ity here. But it has also been very unrecognized, more often than not by choice.

It’s not like New England – people do not think of this as a fishing com munity… fishing provides a lot

of the jobs. If a guy or girl did not mind working hard, they cou ld do super well. Some people used to

make a lot of money, and then 80% of them blew it. Now it has changed a lot over the last 6 to 10

years. But still there are some people making mon ey.” He thinks that the fishing is coming back in

the area, though there are still a lot of problems, “some caused by ourselves, some that we have no

control over.”

When asked about the fishing industry and tourism, our informant said that most of the

industry has been “low key by choice.” He said that the one place where tourists have been

cultivated is at a company that developed a seafood market and restaurant-bar at its dock. Other

businesses “don ’t encourage the tourist link because there is no real benefit to the com pany.” (A

pamphlet This Week in Cape May lists a 45-m inute “Fish erm an’s W harf Tour” that is scheduled to

occur four times in May and June at the above-mentioned dock and fish packing plant. The tours are

sponsored by the Mid-Atlan tic Center for the Arts in Cape May City.)

Bar/hangout

One of our inform ants says the bar/hangout is Maye r’s Bar behind Cap tain’s Cove. He also said that

it used to be a rough place; for example, there was a shooting there involving fishermen in the early

1980s.

A different informant said that the bar/hangout was Carney’s, located on Beach Drive, however, she

may have been referring to the hangout for the sport fishermen. She said that she and all her

friends are mem bers of the Cape May Mar lin and Tuna Club, which is a private, non-pro fit club

requiring dues, and that is where they tend to go. She said the bar is “like a fam ily” where people tell

lots of fish stories.

Coffee: One of our inform ants said that the place to get coffee is the Lobster House coffeehouse for

both charter and commercial fishermen.

Fisheries Profile, Wildwood, NJ

The fishing port of Wildwood is connected to a very popular tourist beach com munity.

Resident and migratory draggers and clam boats are found in Wildwood. The largest landings come

from surf clams and ocean quahogs, both harvested offshore with hydraulic dredges. A processing

factory is in Wildwood. The otter trawl fleet accou nts for 7% of W ildwood's landings, bringing in

summer flounder, Loligo squid, butterfish, Atlan tic croaker, black sea bass, weakfish, and other

species (Table NJ-W W 1). Wildwood also has a sm all pot fishe ry, including offshore lobster, conch,

and fish pots (6% of value). The fish pots are used ma inly for black sea bass. Gill-netting is done

for weakfish, black sea bass, and other species. Wildwood also had some pelag ic longline landings

in 1998, notably swordfish and yellowfin tuna. Other species of Mid-Atlan tic Fishery Management

Cou ncil interest landed in 1998, in sm all quantities (less than 2% landed value) were bluefish,

butterfish, Atlan tic macke rel, scup, and dogfish.

66

Tab le NJ-WW 1: Landings by Gear Type, Wildwood, NJ, 1998

GEAR TYPE: WILDWOOD, NJ

Crab Dredge

Surf Clam/Ocean Quahog Dredge

Gill Net, Drift

Gill Net, Sink

Handline

Longline, Pela gic

Pots & Traps, Offshore Lobster

Pots & Traps, Conch

Pots & Traps, Fish

Otter Trawl

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

0.4 0.5

86.5 79.0

1.9 0.8

0.5 0.4

0.1 0.1

0.9 3.9

0.8 1.7

0.5 2.0

1.1 2.8

7.2 8.6

Unknown 0.0 0.1

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 6,193,40

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $3,492,900 dollars

Field Observations and Interviews, Wildwood, NJ, June 1999

Wildwood City is just north of Cape May. The commercial fishing industry is at Otten 's

Harbor, along Montgom ery Street. Most of the boats are surf clam and ocean quahog dredge

vessels; there are a few finfish draggers.

The fishing-related businesses and other features along the harbor, going from the entrance

to the head, are a marine service com pany, a fishing dock, a lot with trucks, another surf clam dock

and associated house; more houses; a bar; more houses; and then a seafood business with an ice

and bait house and dock. There are also some buildings for sale and some vacant land. One lot had

a sign advertising “750’ on harbor zoned bayfront com mercial.”

On the other side of Montgom ery Street, in the same geographical order, are a marina

which seems to be used for vessel repair; houses; lots with trucks and tractor trailers; and an antique

store. Across the harbor are many houses with docks and pleasure boats. At the head of the harbor,

is the dock of a sightseeing and marine mamm al watching vess el. A seafood market and

restaurant/take-out nearby were closed for the season in June, 1999, when we visited. There are

other recreational fishing docks in Wildwood but there is far less recreational or commercial activity

visible in Wildwood than in Cape May. According to people interviewed at the marine service

business, there used to be 20 full-tim e people working around the harbor in different jobs, but now

there were no fish and no jobs. They blamed all of this on the regulations. They said that the real

downturn happened about two years ago, i.e. 1997. Three boats that were in the harbor five years

ago are gone, one sold off and the other moved to Cape May docks.

W e visited the owner of a sm all dock and surf clamming operation, who form erly owned a

seafood company and a larger fishing business. He has fished for 60 years, and his grandfather

came from Sweden to Wildwood to fish. Over time, our informant has done fin fishing, clamming,

and long-lining for cod. Both of his current boats are used for surf clamming. He indicated that the

"golden days" of this harbor was in the 1960s, when the pattern was to clam in the winter and fin fish

in the summ er. There were party boats in the harbor as well, now gone. Most of the service

facilities that provided ice, fuel, and trucking are also gone. He stated that “The bad effects of less

fishing and boats trick le down.” There also used to be four bars on the street, but only one remains.

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The bay fishery is minor now, too; he mentioned one person who rakes for hard clams and uses pots

for crabs.

The smaller of his two surf clam boats takes a crew of 3, while the larger takes a crew of 4.

They only go out an average of 2 days/week because they are “plant regulated ,” that is told by the

buyer when to go out. His clams are sold to shucking operations in Delaware or in southern New

Jers ey, from which the clam produc ts are sold to large food corporations such as Progresso and

Campbells.

He said that his crews are “rea lly tight” and have been with him for a long time. One captain

has worked for him for 20 years and the other for 10-12 years. He said that his crews live within

Cape May Coun ty and that most of them have second jobs. For example, two of them are

bouncers, one is a painter and one works for a plumbing supply com pany.

According to this veteran, “the fun’s out of it now – you can ’t catch what you want because of

all the rules and regulations.” Some of these regulations are needed, but there are contrary effects.

For example, no commercial fishing is allowed for striped bass but they eat up blue claw crabs.

W e visited the other surf clam/ocean quahog dock, interviewing a manager who has been

there since 1965. This company has 4 boats, ranging from 80’ to 110 ’. Three of the boats have 4-

man crews and one has a 5-man crew. There are also 2 on-shore employees who run the crane

that off-loads the clam cages. The two on-shore employees also engage in other types of dock

work. All of the employees are local residents–including close relatives-- who have been with the

company for a long time.

In the last five years the business has stayed much the same but market prices for clams

have gone down. There was much discussion of the ITQ (individual trans ferable quota) system for

the surf clam and ocean quahog fishe ry. W ith ITQs, this company consolidated 9 boats to 4. Total

crew employment has declined from about 28 to about 20, and shoreside workers declined from 4 to

2 after ITQs came into effect and this company consolidated. He said that the crews now go out an

average of 2 days/week and they are able to survive on that. The company also fishes for ocean

quahogs, which are less valua ble than surf clams and require going out further. They travel about 60

miles offshore for the quahogs, while going only north to the waters off Marga te (Atlan tic City area)

and Point Pleasant for surf clams. They sell to two processors, one in south Jersey and the other in

Delaware.

This informant is not in favor of ITQs. “Before ITQs everybody was more indepen dent.

There are also less and less people in it now. More corporations are buying out people and

controlling prices more....When it comes down to it, our rights are being taken away econom ically.

When the ITQs came in, I fought them. This isn’t a cap italistic country anymore. It’s communist…. I

didn’t like the way they split it [the ITQ allocations] out, even though we were taken care of. I thought

that what happened wou ld happen, that there are less people involved and that the big corporations

control most of the market and the mon ey.” He later clarified what he meant by indepen dent; he said

that because the big companies do not want to assume liability for the high risk nature of clamming

and fishing in general, the fishermen and their boats are technica lly still indepen dent, though they are

not as independent financially. He went on to say that relatively sm all businesses like his have it

hard. Nonetheless, they intend to stay in clamming. The largest end product of the clams being

harvested here is fried clam strips; the media's coverage of pub lic health concerns about fried foods

is yet another problem.

The bar on the waterfront at Otten 's Harbor, on Montgom ery Street, remains the place to

hang out; another place is a bar and restaurant on Park Blvd. People get their coffee at the local

"Wawa's" convenience store.

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Fisheries Profile, Sea Isle City, NJ

Sea Isle City is north of Wildwood, one of the sm all fishing ports of the coast that is

dependent on a dynamic and often prob lematic inlet for access to the sea. The fishery here is

sm all. In 1998 fewer than 750,000 pounds, and $1.2 million dollars, were reported in the weighout

data. There is a sm all offshore longliner fishery for tunas (mostly big eye, albacore and yellowfin)

and swordfish. Otter trawl fishing includes spiny dogfish, skates, angler, and fluke but only 4% of the

landed value. More significant are pot fisheries for offshore lobster (6% of value), conch (12%), and

fish (12%, mostly black sea bass). Gill-netting represents 12% of the value, partic ularly for angler

(monkfish). W e did not visit Sea Isle City for this report but can report that it is prim arily a summer

beach town.

Fisheries Profile, Other Cape May County

In the creeks and bays along the Atlan tic coast of Cape May and around the cape to the

Delaware Bay side are numerous sm all fisheries, coded as "other Cape May." These are the classic

baymen or watermen fisheries, based on crustaceans and shellfish: blue crabs and hard clams

dom inate (66% and 23.5% of landed value, respectively). Horseshoe crabs are also harvested

(12% of the 1998 poundage although only 1.6% of the value). There is a sm all gill-net fishery for

species such as weakfish, American shad, and numerous other estuarine and anadromous species.

Very sm all amo unts of bluefish, butterfish, and summer flounder were landed in 1998. This fishery is

very similar to and intertwined with the "Other Cumberland Cou nty" fishery discussed below.

Tab le NJ-OCM1: Landings by Gear Type, Other Cape May, 1998

GEAR TYPE: OTHER CAPE MAY,

NJ LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

By Hand 17.9 23.6

By Hand, Oyster 0.1 0.8

Dredge, Crab 1.1 0.7

Gill Net, Drift 2.6 0.6

Gill Net, sink 0.0 0.0

Handline 0.5 0.5

Longline, Pela gic 0.3 0.3

Pots & Traps, Crab 74.8 65.3

Pots & Traps, Eel 2.2 4.0

Pots & Traps, Fish 0.0 0.0

Rakes 0.4 1.5

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 1,190,800 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $3,492,900 dollars

Field Observations and Interviews, "Other" Cape May County, NJ, June 1999

A general feature of the Mid-Atlan tic region is the intertwining of bayman, or waterman,

activities and offshore fishing. Accordingly, when visiting Cape May county we also interviewed

people involved in inshore bayman activities, partic ularly crabbing and eeling, to provide some sense

of the nature of these fishing operations, which are found in many other places as well.

First is a marina on Shore Drive in Lower Township, Cape May. A couple run a sm all crab

shack off the docks at this marina, which was once owned by the wife's father and is now managed

by her. They had six crab boxes for storing and breeding live crabs, and for waiting on the shedders.

69

She said their hope is to even tually be able to rely on this crabbing business for an income (they

have another business) and live in the Caribbean Rico part of the year.

She said that crabbing is “an important industry here.” She said that she thinks their live

crab tanks are the only ones in the area. Our informant said that the crabbing season opens March

15 in the back bays and April 15 in the bay; it closes aga in November 15. She said that their catch

has been good so far this year, as opposed to last year. She attributes the increase in crab take to

the lack of dredging in the bay. The marina runs 30 sm all slips, probably all for boats less than 30

feet, most of which are rented all year. Only one slip is used for crabbers.

This informant is the person who first told us about the people who are crabbing northwest

of Cape May City in the Bidwell Creek area (see below). She estimated that there were 7, including

her husband. She also told us about Crab Boy’s fish market on Rte. 47 (see below).

Her husband is one of 7 crabbers who work northwest of Cape May City in the Bidwell

Creek area of Midd le Township, Cape May Coun ty (see below). He has been averaging about 5

bushels a day so far this year, which is good enough for the retail operation but has not allowed them

to get into wholesaling yet. She said that her husband crabs about 200 pots inshore and crabs from

April to November and clams from November to April. He does some commercial minnowing on the

side and also clams, using his feet. Before going into the crabbing business, she said that her

husband worked in a kitchen. They sell mostly retail straight from their little store there, but they also

who lesa le mostly up to a business in Bivalve/Port Nor ris which buys most of the crabs in this area.

W e then talked with a fisherman who also fishes for crabs in the Bidwell Creek area. He and

his wife own and operate a fish market in Midd le Township. He fishes for crabs and clams and then

sells them in their market, which is located in a sparsely developed area of the county. They started

the market 4 years ago because he was not able to make a living what he was being paid,

wholesale, for his catches by buyers, one of which acts like a monopoly, setting the prices in the

area. They not only sell the catches caught by our inform ant, but also sell the catches from some

other crabbers and clamm ers in the area.

The fisherman says he goes out every day, 5:30 AM to midday, in his 24’ x 8’ boat. He has

one helper. He states that ending the day with 10 bushels of crabs is a good day, however there are

not many days like that, due to the weather conditions during the winter. His father was a

lobsterman in Manasquan, NJ, and therefore he started fishing there when he was a kid. He has

been fishing off and on, mostly on, since then with some breaks to join the military and to work as a

builder. He is 37 years old, and has been fishing con tinuously now for 8 or 9 years. He has lived in

the area a total of 20 years.

The store was first established as a fish market in 1942, then closed and fell into disrepair.

Our informant got some money together and then bought the building and fixed it up himself. The

fish market is now open May through September and sells fin fish as well as crabs and clams. The

fin fish that are sold are obtained from a wholesaler. They also make and sell their own chowders.

Our informant says that he belongs to the Clam Association (She llfisherm en's Association) in Naco te

Creek, NJ, and that they are trying to get Governor Whitman and the state to provide funds to

subsidize the cultivation of clams, as is the case in Florida. He says that there is no association for

crabbers.

A marina on Bidwell Creek in Midd le Tow nsh ip is dominated on one side of the creek by

pleasure boats, but on other side, near a sm all bridge, is an area where the fishermen keep their

boats and a building where they store their equipm ent. On a Thursday afternoon there were 11

fishing boats at the marina, most of which looked like crab boats. At the Marina there was also a

crabber who was going out to catch horseshoe crabs with a photographer from the Philadelph ia

Inquirer. They planned to bring the horseshoe crabs up to Den nis Creek where a man from the state

DEP was waiting to inspect them. Horseshoe crab fishing has increased grea tly in this region over

the past decade, mostly for a bait market, and birders and others have pushed for sharp cut-backs in

70

the fishe ry.

A worker at a local bait and tack le shop told us that the marina has a new owner who is

essentia lly pushing out the commercial fishermen because he can make more money from pleasure

boats. He said that the marina used to have a lot more fishing boats than it has now: “It used to be

packed with them .” Our informant said that all the crabbers go for more than just crabs; many of the

crabbers also have perm its for eels, which are used a lot for bait, and other things. However, he said

that the bait sold in this shop is not bought from loca ls and that the bait leaves the area before they

can get it. He said that the Cape May area is a big supplier of bait in other parts of the country. He

states that the bait from Cape May is sold as far south as Florida.

The owner of the bait and tack le shop said that the store is open from March to Dec. 1 and

that he wou ld not be in business without the recreational fishermen, because this is where all of his

business comes from. The recreational fisherman are mostly from Philadelphia.

Cumberland County Profile (includes Port Norris, Bivalve and Shellpile)

Population

The total population in Cumberland Cou nty, in 1990, was 138,053 people. Of those people, 1,701

lived in Port Norris. In the county females outnumbered males by about 2.4%. Only 25.9% of the

population was rura l. Out of the 35,776 rural people, 1,566 lived in Port Norris. 2.6% of the

county’s rural population lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

The majo rity of the population in Cumberland Cou nty, 73.5%, was White. The next largest racial

group was Black, at 16.9%, followed by Hisp anic at 13.3%. There were sm all numbers of American

Indian and Asian residing in the county. Of the population, 95.6% were native. Of the native

population, 68.5% were born in New Jers ey. The most prevalent ancestries reported were German

(26,458 people), Italian (24,670 people), and Irish (19,435 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest comprising 31.1% of the total population. Of the

population, 26.0% was under 18 years of age and 13.5% were 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 47,118 total households in Cumberland Cou nty, 74.3% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 72.4% contained married couples and 21.2% were headed by sing le females. Although

the average number of persons per household was 2.79, 21.6% of the total households were

inhabited by householders living alone.

Of the Cou nty’s 50,294 total housing units, 93.7% were inhabited. Of the occupied housing units,

68.5% were owner occupied and 29.5% were renter occupied. There were 3,176 vacant housing

units in the county, 45 of which were in Port Norris. Of the 3,176 vacant housing units 654 were

used for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. Median value of owner occupied housing units

was $73,900 and median rent in the county was $396. These values were lower in Port Norris,

$47,900 and $256 resp ective ly. 64.1% of the total housing units in the county were one-unit

detached in model. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.0%.

Educational Trends

According to the 1990 Census, of the persons 25 years or older in the county 63.4% held a high

school diploma or higher. Further, 10.8% held a bachelor's degree or higher.

Income

71

Per Capita income for the county was $12,560 and median household income was $29,985. In Port

Nor ris in particular per capita income was $10,401 and median household income was $27,024. Of

the 131,390 people in the county for whom poverty status was determined in 1989, 13.0% were

below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 106,501 people in the county 16 years of age or older, 61.9% were in the labor force. Of

those in the labor force, 99.8% were in the civilian labor force, of which 7.4% were unemployed.

More recent figures for unemployment in the local metropolitan area were 8.6% in 1997 and 8.9% in

1998. There appears to be a seasonal shift in unemployment in the area. For example, in 1998,

unemployment was 10.5% in January, ranged from 7.8% to 9.5% in April through October, than went

back up to 9.9% in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

According to the 1990 Census, of the 60,937 employed people 16 years of age or older, 2.5% were

in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries sector. In Port Norris, 1.4% were in the

agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries sector. In the county the largest sectors were

administrative support occupations, including cleric al, at 16.2%, followed by retail at 14.1%. The

next largest sectors were manufacturing, durable goods; precision production, craft, and repa ir

occupations; service occupations, except protective and household; and professional specialty

occupations. In Port Nor ris the largest sector was also administrative support occupations, including

cleric al, however it was followed by service occupations, except protective and household.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 34 white ma le captains or officers of fishing vess els in

Cumberland Cou nty. There were also 68 white males and 5 white females who engaged in fishing

as an occupation.

Fisheries Profile, "Other Cumberland,"NJ

The two big fisheries for this region, the center of New Jerse y's Delaware Bay fisheries, are

for oysters and blue crabs (Tables NJ-CC1, CC2). 1998 was one of the few years in the past

decade when oysters were harvested, due to problems with oyster diseases (there is no harvest in

2000 due to the disease ‘dermo’). Oysters were taken with dredges, and represented 48% of the

landed value. Blue crabs are caught with dredges and pots, and represented 46% of the value in

1998. Both horseshoe crabs and menhaden are also taken in large quantities (4.8% and 11.6% of

poundage, respectively), and are the focus of controversy in this area due to their alleged roles for

migratory birds and as bait for other fishes.

72

Tab le NJ-CC1: Landings by Gear Type, Cumberland Cou nty, NJ, 1998

Cumberland Coun ty

Landings by Gear Type

Percent

Lbs.

Percent

Value

Handline 0.9 0.6

Gill-net, Sink 2.6 0.9

Gill-net, Drift 5.3 1.4

Pots/Traps, Eels 0.8 1.3

By Hand 11.6 1.4

Dredge, Oyster 15.8 48.0

Dredge, Crab 2.4 1.5

Pots/Traps, Blue Crab 60.6 45.0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 4,444,900 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $5,573,300

.

Tab le NJ-OCM2: Landings by Major Species, Pounds and Value, Other Cumberland Cou nty, NJ,

1998

Cumberland Cou nty, Major Species,

1998

Percent

Lbs.

Percent

Value

Menhaden 4.6

Weakfish 2.6

Blue Crab 62.9

Horseshoe Crab 11.6

Oysters 15.8

0.5

1.5

46.4

1.4

48

Total Species: 19, including MAFMC-m anaged Bluefish (0.0% value, 1998), Butterfish (0.0),

and Summer Flounder (0.0).

Field Observations and Interviews, Port Norris/Bivalve, NJ, June 1999

The port of Bivalve is within Comm ercial Township. Bivalve and She llpile are waterfront

areas next to the sm all town of Port Norris, on the Maurice River. The area has a long history as an

oystering center, but the oyster populations have declined because of oyster diseases. The

infrastructure of the oyster shucking and packing industry is partly used for shucking imported

oysters as well as shucking surf clams, which are brought here from other ports. Crabbing,

weakfish, and other bay fisheries are now important

The largest businesses in the area are sand and gravel mining companies. Farming is also

important. The Rutgers Univers ity Has kin Shellfish Laboratory at Bivalve also provides emp loymen t.

There is one large shellfish company which runs an oyster shucking plant and a large surf

clam/ocean quahog shucking operation in Bivalve and a clam shucking operation in nearby

Shellpile. There are also several that are named as crab businesses but are far more diversified.

73

One of the crab businesses buys from crabbers throughout the region, as far as Cape May,

being one of the largest crab wholesalers in New Jers ey. The owner estimated that 25 to 30 of the

crabbers with whom he dea ls are from the Port Nor ris area. Another 25 to 30 come from other

places, as far as Cape May. He also handles the majo rity of Delaware Bay oysters. The company

owns 7 oyster dredge boats and runs 3 or 4 in any given season (oystering in Delaware Bay is tightly

regulated and very seasonal). The company is involved buying horseshoe crabs and menhaden for

the bait market, too.

One of the business owners currently has 6 permanent employees, two of whom are

Mexicans, and 20 to 25 independent harvesters who regu larly fish for him , one of whom is African-

American. Some African-Americans also work on the docks, but their numbers are sm all given the

large population of African-Americans in this area. Contract labor is occasionally hired, usually

Mexicans (we were told), through the farm labor system of nearby towns or the cities of Camden and

Philadelphia.

Another large business is owned by a company headquartered in Connecticut. It involves

an oyster packing house, a surf clam shucking house not in use, and the two ma in marinas in the

port, with a total of 300 slips and 150 dry storage spaces. It owns 5 oyster boats and has exclusive

arrange men ts with 4 or 5 other boats. It has 40 permanent employees, most of whom live within

about a ten mile radius of Port Norris. In the past, when they had large shellfish shucking

operations, upwards of 50 percent of the workers were African-Americans, mostly as shuckers. Now

there are only two or three African Americans working for the com pany.

A third local business, with plants in another South Jersey location and on the eastern shore

of Maryland, handles surf clams and ocean quahogs which are trucked in from other ports. In 1999

it was said to have a sizeable Vietnamese workforce. It was not visited in 1999. When visited in

2000, it was evident that the plant is highly automated and thus numbers of employees are relatively

low, and in early 2000 this plant was dependent not only on local African-Americans and whites but

also prisoners on work-release programs and ex-add icts in a halfway house program. (Its other

South Jersey plant in Cape May Coun ty relied on contractors for Mexican-American and other

laborers to work on shucking and ‘squeezing’ lines when visited in 2000).

This port has an annual seafood festival called "Bay Day," which is sponsored by the

Tow nsh ip and the Delaware Bay Schooner Projec t, a non-pro fit organization which has documented

the schooners of the oyster fishe ry, restored one or more of the vessels, and tried to increase

education and awareness of the bay. The commercial fishing operations donate product to the

festiv al. The proceeds go to local charities. Although the festival is one indicator of com mun ity

support for the fisheries, one of the seafood business manage rs we interviewed described difficulty

getting building perm its and other local support for expansion or repa ir of the commercial fishing

businesses, as opposed to the recreational marinas. Zoning maps indicate that the waterfront of

Bivalve and Shellpile, at Port Norris, is the only area zoned for commercial operations. The area has

rece ntly been given special econom ic development status for revitalization, being one of the poorest

in the state. One priority is waste water treatm ent.

Fisheries Profile, Other New Jersey

Surp rising ly, some commercial fishing is reported from the heavily urbanized, industrialized

areas of northeastern New Jers ey. There is a substantial amount of squid, both Illex and Loligo, as

well as some summer flounder landed in (and trucked into) heavily urbanized Essex Cou nty, the site

of a packing and processing com pany. Crab pot fishing is found with sm all landings in urbanized

Bergen and Middlesex Counties. At the other side of the state, commercial fishing extends upbay

and upriver from Cumberland Cou nty, into rural Salem and Hunterdon counties. Hunterdon is the

site of one of the last of the river shad seine fisheries (and an annual shad festival). Salem is the

home of sm all-sc ale waterman fisheries which involve gill-netting for shad, weakfish and other

species, harvesting eels and snapper turtles.

74

75

--

4. Delaware’s Fishing Ports

The state of Delaware mostly borders on the Delaware Bay and its tributaries.

Con sequently, its inshore and EEZ ocean fisheries are minor. Its fisheries are "bayman" or

"waterman" fisheries. According to a member of the Mid-Atlan tic Fishery Management Cou ncil and

a Sea Grant marine advisory agent in Delaware, gill-netting predominates, and there are no large

vess els using gear like otter trawls. According to an official at the state Division of Fish and W ildlife

in Dover, there are 120 licensed commercial gill-netters in the state and they all work inshore.

The ports recognized as such by NMFS in Delaware are Lewes, Indian River, and Port

Mahon in Sussex Coun ty and Bowers Beach and Mispillion in Kent Cou nty. The ir commercial

fisheries are almost entire ly focused on blue crab, quahogs (hard clams), and horseshoe crabs. The

only exception is Indian River, where there were also significant landings of black sea bass and

tautog in 1998. This is the only port we visited. "Other Delaware" is a much larger category,

including a wider variety of species. Accordingly, for this report we have combined all Delaware

landings (Tables DE1 and DE2). In 1998, Delaware commercial landings totaled almost 8 million

pounds, of which 72% were blue crabs, 23% were horseshoe crabs and 6% weakfish. Other

important species were striped bass, American shad, black sea bass, and quahogs.

The gear types used by Delaware fishermen are predom inate ly those of "baymen" or

"watermen" working the estuary, bay, and tributaries of the Delaware Bay and River, bordering New

Jers ey. They include:

“by hand” (18% of lbs., 3% of value): harvesting horseshoe crabs as they come up onto the

beaches to reproduce

– haul seines (<0.2% of value; used upriver for perch, gizzard shad, catfish, and similar

freshwater and brackish water species; form erly of importance for shad and sturgeon as well)

– crab dredges (5.7% of value)

– fyke nets for fish and for turtles (mostly for snapper turtles; < 0.1% value)

– gill nets: both drift (4.4% of value) and stake (7.8% of value). Both types are used for

weakfish (squeteague) and a large number of other estuarine and upriver species; stake nets are

favored for American shad

– handlines (1.9%), mostly for weakfish

– Pots/traps: for lobsters (0.1%); this is a very minor and marginal fishe ry; this far south, only

the offshore fishers have real luck with lobsters

– Pots/traps: for blue crabs (67.6%): the major fishery of Delaware. Much takes place in the

Delaware Bay.

– Pots/traps: for conch (1.6%); for fish (3.6%). For fish traps, the most important species is

black sea bass; another is the less well marketed "oyster catche r;"

-- Rakes: these, like the "tongs and grabs," are now used for quahogs, or hard clams

(Mercen aria mercena ria); in times past they were also used for oysters.

Recreational fishing predominates in Delaware. A survey has not been done in many years,

but the Sea Grant marine advisory agent estimated about 80 recreational marinas in the state. He

said that probably 30 to 35 of the ones that are in the coastal bays are com mun ity marinas, i.e., open

only to residents.

76

Tab le DE1: Landings by Cou nty, Delaware, 1998

Landed Percent Percent

Port Name Coun ty Pounds Pounds Value Value

OTHER KENT KENT

BOWERS BEACH KENT

MISPILLION KENT

KENT 2564104 32.9% 1843156 33%

OTHER NEW

CASTLE

NEW CASTLE 1577376 20.3% 1,466,011 26.2%

OTHER

DELAWARE

NOT-SPECIFIED 1900412 24.5% 1,137,546 20.3%

PORT MAHON SUSSEX

INDIAN RIVER SUSSEX

OTHER SUSSEX SUSSEX

LEWES SUSSEX

SUSSEX 1726646 22.1% 1145340 20.5%

Total 7,768,538 100.00% 5,592,053 100.00%

Note: because landings for several ports are confidential, due to the small number of participants involved, we

provide data at the county level only.

Tab le DE2: Landings by Gear Type, 1998, Delaware

GEAR TYPE: DELAWARE Lbs. % Value %

Comm on Haul Seine 0.6 0.2

Dredge, Crab 10.0 5.7

Fyke Net, Fish 0.0 0.0

Fyke Net, Tur tle 0.2 0.1

Gill Net, Drift 6.1 4.4

Gill Net, Stake 8.1 7.8

Hand line 2.0 1.9

Pots/Traps, Lobster, Inshore 0.0 0.1

Pots/Traps, Blue Crabs 51.6 67.6

Pots/Traps, Conch 0.6 1.6

Pots/Traps, Fish 1.9 3.6

Rakes, Other 0.9 3.8

By hand 18.0 2.9

Tongs & Grabs, Clam 0.0 0.1

Total Landings, rounded 1998: 7,768,500 lbs.

Total Value, rounded 1998: $5,592,000 dollars

77

Tab le DE3: Major Species, Delaware, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES: DELAWARE Lbs (%) Value (%)

Bass, Striped 4.4 4.4

Crab, Blue 71.8 71.5

Crab, Horseshoe 23.0 3.8

Quahog 3.9 3.9

Shad, American 2.8 1.0

Weakfish 6.0 6.0

Total Species Landed: 40

Other species of Mid-Atlan tic Cou ncil respon sibility (by percentage total value): Black Sea Bass

(confidential), Bluefish (0.2%), Butterfish (0.0%), Summer Flounder (0.5%), Atlan tic Mackerel

(0.0%), Scup (0.0%), Dogfish (0.1).

Sussex County Profile (includes Indian River, Lewes, and Port Mahon)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, the total population in Sussex Coun ty was 113,229. Women

outnumbered men by a sm all percen t. Rural population was 85.7% of the population, though only

2.7% lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the population in Sussex Cou nty, 81.6% were white and 16.8% were black. There were sm all

numbers of American Indians and Asians. The Hisp anic population was also very sm all, at 1.3%.

Only 2,063 people in the county were foreign-born, and 53.6 of the native born population was born

in Delaware. The most prevalent ancestries reported were English (28,103 people); German

(18,655 people); and Irish (18,492 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest, at 33,590 people or 29.7%. Population under 18

years of age was 23.9% and 16.7% was 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 43,681 households in Sussex Cou nty, 73.4% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 58.8% contained married couples and 10.9% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.54 people lived in each household, but householders living alone occupied 22.3% of the

households.

Of the 43,681 households, 21.4% were renter occupied. There were 30,572 vacant housing units in

the county, 18,631 of which were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The homeowner

vacancy rate was 4.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.0%. The median value of the owner-

occupied housing units was $79,800 in 1990 and median rent was $278. One -unit detached

housing comprised 57.0% of all housing units and mobile homes and trailers 29.3%.

Educational Trends

In Sussex Cou nty, 69.7% of the population, 25 years of age or older, was a high school gradua te or

higher; 13.0% had a bachelor's degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $12,723 and median

household income was $26,904. Of the 110,736 people for whom poverty status was determined in

1989, 10.7% were below the poverty line.

78

Employment

Of the 88,867 people 16 years of age or older in Sussex Cou nty, 62.1% were in the labor force. Of

these, 99.7% were in the civilian labor force, of which 4.1% were unemployed. More recent

unemployment figures for the state of Delaware were 4.0% in 1997 and 3.8% in 1998. The state

shows slight seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1997, unemployment was 5.5% in

January, ranged from 3.4% to 4.1% from April through October, and was then back up to 4.6% in

January of 1998.

Employment Industries

Of the 52,710 employed people 16 years of age or older, in Sussex Cou nty, 3,112, or 5.9% were in

the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector of all was retail at 18.8%

followed by precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations at 15.9%. The next largest

occupations were administrative support occupations, including cleric al; manufacturing, nondurable

goods; service occupations, except protective and household; sales occupations; and construction.

Government workers comprised 13.8% of the work force and there were 4,350 self-employed

workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 7 fishing vessel captains or officers in Sussex Cou nty, all

of them white men. There were also 100 white men who engaged in fishing as an occupation in

1990.

Field Observations and Interviews, Indian River, DE, July 1999

According to the Sea Grant marine advisor, most of the EEZ fishing in Delaware is done out

of Indian River Inlet. No more than a dozen or so fishermen use pots for various species, including

black sea bass. The boats used are roughly between 30' and 40' in length, and they are also used

for ocean gill-netting. At our visit to Indian River Inlet we saw no commercial fishing boats but

dozens of recreational boats at marinas at both sides of the inlet. W e were told that Indian River,

together with nearby Lewes, has the largest charter boat fleet in Delaware. Many "6-pack" charters

go out for tuna as well as other species.

On the north side of the inlet, where the Delaware Seashore State Park Marina is located,

we talked to a person who runs a "seafood and fish cleaning" business. He once was a commercial

fisherman, and the first thing he said to us was, “Years ago there used to be commercial fishing

here, but the state eliminated it. They don ’t want commercial fishing. They just want private boats.”

He said that there are 340 recreational boats in the marina where he’s located and 92 in the

South Side Marina, plus there are marinas for smaller recreational boats up the bay. There is only

one active commercial fishing boat left that has been “grandfathered” into the state park marina, a

42-46' vessel used to fish year round in the ocean for lobster, sea bass, or conch. Another, a lobster

boat, no longer goes out because of deaths of its owners. The yearly round of the active vessel was

described: in March and April he puts in pots for black sea bass. May to mid-June are the best

months for that fishe ry. He then hau ls out those pots and puts in other pots for lobster, which picks

up in July. . W hile he’s waiting for the lobsters, he goes out for conch. In September and October,

there ’s another good run of bass. At the end of October, he’ll bring all his lobster and bass pots in,

and for a few months he’ll work on his boat and gear. At one time the cap tain also used to dredge

for crabs in the summ er, but hasn’t in recent years.

Our informant told us more about the history of fishing at Indian River Inlet. He started

fishing when he was 6, but now his boat and fishing gear are “sitting in the woods. Delaware doesn’t

want commercial fishing anymore.” He still has his license, but doesn’t see any way he cou ld still

fish. He said that he used to live exactly where the state marina is right now -- there were a couple of

hundred houses there, some just shacks and others more perm anent, large ly inhabited by fishermen

and their families. There used to be commercial boats as well as charter boats – “people did one or

the other.” The commercial fishermen used nets, hook and line or cod gear (something like longline

79

rigs, used in the winter). Everything was run by hand. He said he was running his own boat by the

time he was 10, mostly catching flounder, which he said was “top dollar” then. He said that

commercial fishing was going strong until the mid-‘70s, when “the state started to phase it out.” Now

most of the commercial fishermen are dead, and the ones that are around his age (late 30s, early

40s) went into charter boats or non-fishing occupations. He hasn’t put his own boat into the water or

set nets for 4 or 5 years. “Three weeks here, 6 weeks there, you just can ’t make it that way.” He

thinks that the draggers are the ones resp ons ible for depleted fish stocks but that they don ’t get the

blame generally because they are “out of sight” to the public. “The sm all gill-netters are in sight here,

and when people don ’t catch fish, they blame it on them .”

He’s started running a seafood market while he was fishing because he got married and had

children. His previous one was on the south side of the inlet and he closed it a few years ago. He

started this one on the north side just this season, for tourists, at the request of the state. He buys

almost all of his fresh seafood from the boats in West Ocean City, Cape May and Chincoteague, but

on the day we were there he had also had snapper from North Carolina, salmon from a NY fish farm,

farm-grown clams from Virgin ia and shrim p from Texas that was fast-frozen on the boat. He also

buys from the local fisherman mentioned above. He’s really concerned about how high prices are

going for seafood caught in this county, saying “at this rate, it’s all going to be shipped from other

countries .”

Other Ports

W e did not visit Lewes but were told that it too is a major recreational fishing center, but has

some gill-netters and sea bass pot fishermen. In the summer months, it is dominated by

recreational fishing but in other seasons there is some commercial activit y. There are gill-netters at

other places, such as Mispillion Inlet or Slaughters Beach, many of whom are probably part-time,

and there are a few sea bass potters as well. Bowers Beach is another site, and like Slaughters

Beach is an important charter boat port with a few gill-netters and pot fishermen too.

80

5. Maryland's Fishing Ports

Maryland has two distinct fishing regions: the seaward coast of the Delmarva Pen insu la and

the Chesapeake Bay. Ocean City, on the sea coast, is the major port for ocean fisheries of the EEZ

and of Mid-Atlan tic Fishery Management Cou ncil concern. Con sequently, in this report we focus on

Ocean City and the county in which it is found, Worcester Cou nty, as well as one Chesapeake Bay

port, Crisfield, and its county, Som erset. In reporting fisheries statistics, we distinguish Ocean City

and "other Maryland ports." As seen in Tab le MD1, NMFS weighout data did not distinguish

separa te ports for over 70% of the poundage and 87% of the value in 1998. Apart from Ocean City,

the “ports” are water bodies for which data are provided by the Potomac River Fisheries

Comm ission. The State of Maryland maintains its state fisheries data on the bas is of water bodies

as well but provides data to NMFS as “unspecified Maryland .” Separate information from the State

of Maryland is summarized in Tables MD2 and MD3.

Tab le MD1: NMFS Weighout Landings by Coun ty and Port, Maryland, 19985

Landed Percent Percent

Port Name Coun ty Pounds Pounds Value Value

AQUALAND CHARLES 1,279,483 2.1% 701,875 1.0%

NEALE SOUND CHARLES 484,571 0.8% 361,968 0.5%

PICCOWAX EN CREEK CHARLES 428,061 0.7% 286,753 0.4%

GOOSE BAY CHARLES 324,395 0.5% 176,002 0.3%

MATTAW OMAN CREEK CHARLES 222,411 0.4% 131,969 0.2%

NANJEMOY CREEK CHARLES

PORT TOBBACO CHARLES

WAV ERLY CREEK CHARLES

SMITH POINT (MD) CHARLES

MORGANTOWN CHARLES

SANDY POINT (MD) CHARLES

MALLOWS BAY CHARLES

CHICAMUXEN CREEK CHARLES

RIVERSIDE CHARLES

CUCKOLDS CREEK CHARLES

POPES CREEK CHARLES

WICOMICO RIVER (C) CHARLES

MARSHALL HALL CHARLES

OTHER MARYLAND NOT-SPECIFIED 42,870,255 70.1% 57,443,070 85.5%

PISCATAWAY CREEK PRINCE

GEO RG E'S

OTHER PRINCE GEO RG E'S PRINCE

GEO RG E'S

SMITH CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 1,119,646 1.8% 256,919 0.4%

ST. PAT RICK 'S CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 469,574 0.8% 209,366 0.3%

HERRING CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 823,583 1.3% 201,706 0.3%

ST. GEORGES CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 318,909 0.5% 174,874 0.3%

WHITE NECK CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 244,248 0.4% 135,716 0.2%

ISLAND CREEK ST. MAR Y'S 402,962 0.7% 135,166 0.2%

2 Omitted are records for places with pounds or value less than 100,000, to protect confidentialit y; in this table these are

primarily locations within the jurisdiction of the Potomac River Fisheries Commission.

81

PINEY POINT ST. MAR Y'S

COMBS CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

BRETON BAY ST. MAR Y'S

ST. INIGOES CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

CANOE NECK CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

COOPER CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

WICOMICO RIVER (S.M.) ST. MAR Y'S

ST. MAR Y'S RIVER ST. MAR Y'S

POPLAR HILL CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

DUKEHART CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

FLOOD CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

LAKE CONOY ST. MAR Y'S

BLAKE CREEK ST. MAR Y'S

WHITE POINT BEACH ST. MAR Y'S

OCEAN CITY WO RCESTER 11,073,123 18.1% 6,356,802 9.5%

61,167,928 100.00% 67,189,569 100.00%

Note: Data for ports in which landings were less than 100,000 pounds or dollars are omitted.

Landings data from the State of Maryland provide another view of the social geography of

the state ’s fisheries. Tables MD2 and MD3 sum mar ize landings by water body, with coding that

indicates rough approximations of the importance of particular species to landings from a particular

water body, whether the oceanside bays, state waters of the Atlan tic ocean, a section of the

Chesapeake Bay, or one of the tributaries to the bays. Except for summ ary percentages of landings

by water body, precise data were not reproduced here to protect con fiden tiality.

82

Tab le MD-2: State of Maryland Landings Data,

Percent Landings of Species by Area:

1998, Part I6

% Tot.Landings:

Blue Blue

Total Total Crab: Crab: Soft

Location Pounds Dollars Hard Soft Bluefish Butterfish Clam

Oceanside Bays 2.1% 1.9% ***** *** *

Atlan tic Ocean

1-3m 1.5% 0.6% * *

Back River 0.1%

Big Annemessex

River 0.3% 0.8% *** *****

Blackwater River

Boh em ia River 0.2% 0.1%

Bush River 0.3% 0.2%

Chesapeake Bay

& Tributaries:

North of Worton

Pt. 3.0% 2.8% ***** *

No.Bay

Bridge-Worton Pt. 8.8% 10.0% ***** *

North 1.0% 0.5%

So.Bay

Br-Patuxent R. 18.1% 18.2% ***** * **

South 13.2% 11.6% ***** ** *

Chester River 3.1% 3.3% **** * **

Choptank River 8.3% 10.1% **** * **

Eastern Bay 1.5% 2.1% **** *

Elk River 0.2% 0.1% *

Fishing Bay 3.4% 2.5% ***** *

Gunpowder River 0.2% 0.2% * *

Herring Bay 0.4% 0.1%

3 Source: unpublished State of Maryland Data

Note: a blank cell indicates either no landings at all or landings below .06% of the total for the

water body

* = .06-5.0 % of landings for the location

** = 5.1-15.0% of landings for the location

*** = 15.1-25.0% of landings for the location

**** = 25.1-50.0% of landings for the location

***** = 50.1-100.0% of landings for the location.

83

Honga River 1.5% 1.1% ***** *

Hoopers Stra it 1.2% 0.3% * *

Little Choptank

River 3.5% 5.1% **** *

Magothy River 0.2% 0.2% ***** *

Man okin River 0.5% 1.1% *** *

Miles River 1.0% 1.0% ***** ***** *

Mon ie Bay 0.0% 0.0% * *

Nanticoke River 1.6% 1.7% ****

Northeast River 0.2% 0.1% *

Patapsco River 0.2% 0.2% *****

Patuxent River 2.7% 2.1% ***** *

Pocomoke River 0.3% 0.2% *

Pocomoke Sound 1.1% 2.6% *** * *

Potomac River:

Main Stem *****

Potomac

River-Tributaries 8.4% 5.0% ****

Sassafras River 1.1% 0.5% ** *

Severn River 0.3% 0.4% *****

Sm ith Creek 0.0% 0.1% **

South River 0.5% 0.4% *****

St. Jerome Creek 0.1% *

St. Mary's River 0.6% 1.2%

Susquehanna

Flats 0.7% 0.3%

Susquehanna

River 0.4% 0.2%

Tangier Sound 5.6% 8.6% ****

Transquaking

River 0.1% *****

Unknown 1.5% 1.3% *

West River **

Wicom ico

River/W.Co. 0.4% 0.5% ****

W ye River 0.7% 0.7% ***** ****

Source: unpublished State of Maryland Data

Note: a blank cell indicates either no landings at all or landings below .06% of the total for

the water body

* = .06-5.0 % of landings for the water body

** = 5.1-15.0% of landings for the water body

*** = 15.1-25.0% of landings for the water body

**** = 25.1-50.0% of landings for the water body

***** = 50.1-100.0% of landings for the water body

84

4 Source: unpublished State of Maryland DataNote: a blank cell indicates either no landings at all or landings below .06% of the total for the water body* = .06-5.0 % of landings for the location; ** = 5.1-15.0% of landings for the location*** = 15.1-25.0% of landings for the location; **** = 25.1-50.0% of landings for the location***** = 50.1-100.0% of landings for the location

85

Tab le MD-3 : State of Maryland Landings Data, 1998, Part II7

Summer

Flounder

Atlan tic

Mackerel

Black

Sea

Bass

Striped

Bass

Smoo th

Dogfish

Spiny

DogfishLocation Eel Menhaden Oysters Other

Oceanside Bays * * * * * * * **

Atlan tic Ocean 1-3m **** * * *** * ** **

Back River * * *****

Big Annemessex

River *

Blackwater River *****

Bohem ia River *****

Bush River * ** *****

Chesapeake Bay &

Tributaries:

North of Worton Pt.

No.Bay

Bridge-Worton Pt. * ** ** **

North ** *** *****

So.Bay Br-Patuxent

R. * ** ** *

South * * * ** *

Chester River * * **** ** ***

Choptank River * * **** ** ***

Eastern Bay * * **** * *

Elk River **** * *

Fishing Bay * *****

Gunpowder River * * * * ** **

Herring Bay *** *****

Honga River **** **** **

Hoopers Stra it * * * * ** *

Little Choptank River * *** **** ****

Magothy River * * **** * *

86

Man okin River ** * *

Miles River * *

Mon ie Bay * * *

Nanticoke River *****

Northeast River * **** * ***

Patapsco River **** *****

Patuxent River * *

Pocomoke River * * ** * ***

Pocomoke Sound **** *****

Potomac River: Main

Stem * * * *

Potomac

River-Tributaries *****

Sassafras River * * * ** * ****

Severn River ** *****

Smith Creek ** *

South River *****

St. Jerome Creek * * *

St. Mary's River **** **** **** **

Susquehanna Flats * * * ***** ** *

Susquehanna River * *****

Tangier Sound * *****

Transquaking River * ** * *

Unknown *****

West River * * * * * ***** *

Wicom ico

River/W.Co. ***** *

W ye River ** *** *

Worcester County Profile (includes the fishing port of West Ocean City and Ocean City)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, the total population in Worcester Coun ty was 35,028. Of that

population, 5,146 people lived in Ocean City. In Worchester Cou nty, males outnumbered

females by a sm all percen t. Rural population was 54.6%, although none of the rural

population lived in Ocean City. Of the rural population only 4.3% lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

In the county, 77.8% of the people were white and 21.3% were black, according to the 1990

Census. There were sm all numbers of American Indian, Asian, and Hispanic. In Ocean City,

96.3% of the population was white. The number of foreign born individ uals in the county was

523, of which 133 were from Ocean City, while 64.2% of the native population was born in

Maryland. The most prevalent ancestries reported were English (8,470 people); German

(5,993); and Irish (5,652).

Age Structure

In Worchester Cou nty, the 25 to 44 year old age group was the largest at 10,688 people, or

30.5%. Population under 18 years of age was 22.0% of the population and 17.3% was 65

years of age or older.

In Ocean City the 25 to 44 year old age group was also the largest at 31.0%, however, only

11.9% of the population was under 18 years of age and 20.9% of the population was 65 years

of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 14,142 total households in the Cou nty, 69.3% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 54.8% contained married couples and 11.5% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.44 people lived in each household, but householders living alone occupied

24.7% of the households.

Of the 14,142 households, 4,345 were renter occupied. There were 27, 658 vacant houses,

22,899 of which were in Ocean City. Of the 27,658 vacant houses, 25,112 were used for

seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The homeowner vacancy rate was 8.6% and the

rental vacancy rate was 9.8%. The median value of owner occupied housing units was

$83,500 in 1990 and median rent was $296. One -unit detached housing comprised 34.3% of

the total housing units, and ten or more units comprised 36.9% of the total housing units.

Educational Trends

In Worchester Coun ty 70.8% of the population, 25 years of age or older, was a high school

gradua te or higher; 14.8% had a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $14,341 and median

household income was $27,586. In Ocean City per capita income was $20,570 and median

household income was $25,959. Of the 34,401 people in the county for whom poverty status

was determined, 11.0% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 28,094 people 16 years of age or older in Worchester Cou nty, 64.8% were in the labor

force. Of these 99.9% were in the civilian labor force, of which 4.8% were unemployed. More

recent unemployment figures for the county are 10.8% in 1997 and 10.4% in 1998. The

county shows seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment was

21.6% in January, ranged from 3.7% to 11.1% from April through October, and then was back

up to 17.7% in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 17,322 employed people 16 years of age or older in Worchester Cou nty, 1,014, or 5.9%

were in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries sectors. Of these 1, 014 people, 10

live in Ocean City. The census reported a total of 66 people in the fishing indus try. The

largest sector of all in the county was retail at 22.8%, followed by service occupations, except

protective and household, at 15.2%. The next largest occupations were sales occupations;

precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations; administrative support occupations,

including clerical; executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; and construction.

87

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 33 fishing vessel captains or officers in Worchester

Cou nty, all of them white men. There were also 33 white men who engaged in fishing as an

occupation.

Fisheries Profile, Ocean City (West Ocean City)

Ocean City, on the Atlan tic Coas t, is the only major port in Maryland engaged in the

inshore and EEZ ocean fisheries. It accou nts for 18.1% of the pounds landed and only 9.5%

of the value landed in 1998 (Table MD1).

The major commercial fishing gears used for landings in Ocean City in 1998 (Table

MD-OC1) were:

gill-netting, heavily dependent on angler and spiny dogfish, but engaged in a very

diversified fishe ry;

surf clam and ocean quahogging, with sm all by-catches of angler and scallops;

bottom dragging with otter trawls, a highly diversified fishe ry, with strong foci on

summer flounder and loligo squid, but also landing 48 other species.

In terms of value, other gear types also emerge as important, nam ely fish traps and

pelag ic longlining. Traps are also used for lobster and conch.

Tab le MD-OC1: Landings by Gear Type, Ocean City, MD 1998

GEAR TYPE:

OCEAN CITY, MD

By hand

Dredge, SCOQ

Gill net, sink

Handline

Harpoon

Longline, pelag ic

Pots, Lobster Offshore

Pots/Traps, Conch

Pots/Traps, Fish

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Fish

Lbs. % Value %

0.0 0.0

56.3 55.8

28.1 13.7

0.0 0.0

0.0 0.0

2.1 11.1

0.1 0.7

0.9 1.4

2.9 7.4

9.5 9.9

Unknown 0.0 0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 11,073,123 lbs. ( of state total)

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $6,356,802 ( of state total)

The major species caught com mercially in Ocean City (Table MD-OC 2), ranked by

1998 landed value, are:

surf clams and ocean quahogs

black sea bass caught mostly with fish traps but also gillnets and draggers;

angler, caught prim arily with sink gillnets but also by the draggers and the clam boats;

spiny dogfish, caught prim arily by the gillnet fleet and also by draggers.

summer flounder, mostly a dragger fishery

swordfish, among the species caught with pelag ic longlines from this port (tunas are

also caugh t, and big eye and yellowfin tuna each represented over 2% of the total landed

value in 1998).

88

--

--

--

Other species of significance (using the criterion of at least 2% of poundage or value)

are:

Atlan tic croaker and Atlan tic macke rel, each caught by draggers and gill-netters

striped bass, also caught by draggers and gill-netters

lobster, an offshore pot fishe ry.

Tab le MD-OC2: Major Species, Landed, Ocean City, MD, 1998

Major Species:

Ocean City, MD Lbs (%)

Dogfish, Spiny 21.6

Angler 3.8

Clam, Surf **

Quahog, Ocean **

Sea Bass, Black 2.8

Flounder, Summer 1.6

Swordfish 0.7

Tuna, Big Eye 0.5

Tuna, Yellow fin 0.5

Value (%)

5.6

6.0

**

**

7.1

5.0

4.5

2.7

2.3

Total Species Landed: 69

Note: ** indicates confidential data because fewer than 3 fede rally permitted dealers involved.

Other species landed of MAFMC relevance (by % value): Bluefish (0.3%), Butterfish (**),

Atlan tic Mackerel (0.5%), Scup (**), Tilefish (**), Loligo Squ id (0.8%), Illex Squ id (**).

Field Observations and Interviews, Ocean City, MD, July 1999

Ocean City is situated on approxim ately ten miles of barrier island and is next to an

inlet that was created during a hurricane in the 1930s. It is a huge tourist com munity, with

hotels, mo tels and condos for rent stretching for miles from south to north on the Ocean City

peninsula. Ocean City has grown into a major summer resort area in the last twenty to twen ty­

five years. On the sports fishing side, Ocean City is billed as the "W hite Mar lin Capital of the

W orld", and the waterfront is dominated by recreational marinas. There are several marinas in

Ocean City and one in West Ocean City, at the harbor used for commercial fishing. This

harbor is direc tly west of the inlet at the southern end of the city.

Ocean City is the only major ocean fishing com mun ity in Maryland, though some of

the Chesapeake communities do bring in species of interest to the Cou ncil from the bay. It is

important to note that the commercial fishing industry in "Ocean City" is actually located in

West Ocean City. Parts of the industry at one time were located at the southern tip of Ocean

City but no longer are. Tucked away in West Ocean City, just across from the southern tip of

the Ocean City peninsula, is the commercial fishing indus try, situated prim arily on S. Harbor

Road just a short distance from Assateague Island and the inlet leading to the Atlan tic Ocean.

On S. Harbor Road itself, the seafood businesses and boats are on one side of the street and

sm all houses are on the other.

89

According to one inform ant, the daughter of a fisherman and employee of a packing

house in West Ocean City, the fishing industry here began with fish camps on the northern

end of Assateague Island. There they fished with pound nets pulled by horses or by winches,

and they had sm all sheds to sort the catches. A major storm in the 1930s destroyed many of

them, but several were moved to West Ocean City when the harbor and inlet was dug out of

the ma rshy, sandy land some years afterwards. A train used to come into Ocean City and

wou ld pick up the fish for market. She said that her father was resp ons ible for starting the sea

bass, offshore lobster and inshore cod fishery in the Ocean City area. Later it became a

center for surf-clamming. At one time there were twenty surf clam vess els over 75 feet

docked here, but now there are only four. Today it is a center for surf-clamming, finfish

dragging, gill-netting.

One of our inform ants is a former fisherman and current member of a fisheries

management council. He ran a surf clamming boat for 21 years and his father was a surf

clammer as well. He said that there used to be close to 20 boats in the Ocean City area and

that “there were some tremendous clam landings there over the years.” He said that most of

the clamming boats that were in West Ocean City are now in New Jersey (prim arily in Atlan tic

City, but also Wildwood and Point Pleasant). After fishing, he owned a couple of ice plants and

then turned one into a miniature golf course which he ran until he sold it two or three years

ago.

Few of the ocean fishermen of West Ocean City belong to fisheries organizations.

There is a statewide organization, Maryland W aterm en’s Association, based in Annapolis, with

a Worchester Coun ty chapter, but few of the local fishermen belong, large ly because the

Associa tion’s emphasis has been helping the Chesapeake Bay fishermen. Bay crabbers,

clamm ers and gill-netters far outnumber the ocean fishermen in Maryland. The consequence

is lack of representation for the ocean fishermen: “It’s disgusting how ill-prepared we are.”

Another person interviewed commented that the ocean fishermen are not well represented by

the Association, and that “We ’re the last of the line.”

There is also concern that when and if aquaculture develops in the region, it will be

dominated by the large poultry firms, already well-established in the Delmarva Pen insu la

region: “The chicken people are here. They have n’t been successful yet in moving into

aquaculture here, but it will start to happen. Just look at wha t’s happening in the south with

catfish and rockfish.” (For stories on land use controversies and the link between chicken

corporations and aquaculture, he cited the local paper, the Salisbury Daily Times, and the

Baltimore Sun.)

Like other places in the Mid-Atlantic, the dealer side of the fishery involves both

“packing out” facilities and actual buyers or consignment shippers, sometimes but not always

one and the same. There are two active fede rally permitted dealers in Ocean City, plus one

Delaware-based dealer that uses one of the Ocean City dealers to pack out all of his

purchases. There are numerous out-of-s tate fede rally permitted dealers that use these two

docks as packing houses.

One fish packing house in West Ocean City, a family-run business, is the largest.. A

long- time employee who is also the daughter of a fisherman spoke to the research team. She

said that there are 4 surf clam boats, about 6 dragger/trawlers and at least a dozen smaller

boats (up to 50') that gill net for a variety of fin fish species (black sea bass was mentioned)

and conch. The company she works for owns 3 of the dragger/trawlers and packs the catches

of many of the other boats. She affirmed that this company is the biggest local packing house

and that the only other one of any size is next door. She also said there is a sm all operation

down the road that packs surf clams only. She and some of the men on the docks said there

is a plan to open another surf clam packing house within the year. (In March 2000 we learned

that a vertically integrated sea clam company based in Norfolk, VA, has two of the surf

90

clam/ocean quahog boats in West Ocean City and its dock is packing out most if not all of the

clams offloaded in this port).

The packing house where she works takes in a wide variety of species: surf clams,

ocean quahogs, sea bass, flounder, bluefish, croakers, sea trout, lobsters and conchs as well

as dogfish and monkfish in the winter and tuna and swordfish in the summ er. According to the

inform ant, the most important species for the company are flounder and sea bass among the

fin fish and lobsters and conch among the shellfish. She said they are busy all year, since

West Ocean City is the only major ocean port between Cape May, NJ and Hampton Roads,

VA.

About a quarter of the captains and crews are from out of state, prim arily Delaware,

but a few are from Virginia. Most of the “locals” live within 30 minutes of the harbor and “on

the land side” -hardly any live in Ocean City itself. She said there is no migrant labor to speak

of. Occ asionally women work on the boats, and the informant told us that the men didn’t like it

when the first woman went to work on a clam boat 10 to 15 years ago. Apparen tly there are

more women than men in some of the com pany’s positions, nam ely in the retail market and in

flounder filleting (the ma in processing activity). In total, the company has between 20 and 25

full-tim e employees.

This company sells a lot of its flounder fillets to restaura nts in Ocean City. In fact,

most of its restaurant trade is there, with a little in Salisbury, MD, and southern Delaware.

Otherwise, what they pack is shipped to New York, Philadelphia, Hampton, VA, and Jessup,

MD. The company does little freezing, just some of the winter catch for summer use,

“because that’s when everybody wants it.”. The retail market is open year round and is most

active from mid -Apr il to Oct. 1, which is the same for the restaurant trade.

Land use, especia lly condominium developmen t, is a major issue for the fishing

industry in the Ocean City area, as was documented in the 1993 study as well. There we

pointed out that the commercial docks are located between a business section and a

residential section, and residen ts are quick to point to violations of zoning. Expensive homes

have been built close to the harbor, and past industry practices such as storing gear on

property zoned residential have had to stop.

One of our inform ants said that one of the reasons he converted a 90-year old ice

plant to a golf course was that condominium dwellers near the building had begun to

complain, bringing the building to the attention of the city, which threatened to condemn the

building. The city also rezoned the property from industrial to commercial marine, within which

only about 25% of the industrial zone uses are allowed. He said that the condominium owners

then began protesting the existence of the golf course.

Our visit coincided with meetings about rezoning the harbor. A major concern on the

part of some of the commercial fishers is that the docks will become non-conforming,

meaning that any replacement or rebuilding of structures will be impeded. This informant

interprets it as part of a larger trend to force out the fishermen. “You ’d think we were out to

rape the environment or som ething,” he said, offering specific instances of attempts by local

residen ts to stop commercial activities, including a proposal to farm scallops in one of the local

bays. Large housing developmen ts have attracted retirees and others with “money and time”

who become involved in local environmental issues, often with little knowledge of actual

environmental matters. For example, at a hearing on hard clamming that took place earlier in

the year, a man from a new development claimed that the fishermen were digging up all of the

bottom around Ocean City to a depth of 2 feet. The informant said he “cou ld not hold it in any

longer,” and so he stood up and said, “I’ve dredged clams in the bay and ocean from New

York to Virginia, and no one digs down to 2 feet. The point is that you dredge as fast as you

can, that’s the way you have to do it, and you dig down 6 inches at mos t.” He said the man just

asserted that he was “full of c___.” The city council hasn’t been very supportive of the fishing

91

com munity, either. One councilman was known for many statem ents to the effect that “that ’s

our pond out there and they’re screwing it up.”

The harbor rezoning cited above was the subject of a pub lic hearing the night before

the research visit (July 13, 1999). The area in question, on the south side of Sunset Ave and

the north side of S. Harbor Road to the east of Golf Course Road, is currently subject to

different zonings. The allowable uses for individual parc els have been modified “to

accom mod ate whatever business wants to go in.” Another informant said that some people

interpret the change as an effort to preserve the commercial fishing industry in West Ocean

City and that others see it as having an adverse effect on it in the sense that existing

businesses might not be able to alter their physical plant or use. “The bottom line is that they

don ’t want the clam boats unloading here,” she said. She added that “the who le deal with

zoning is about condos.” In the last 10 to 20 years the fishermen have lost three parc els along

the waterfro nt: some houses were built on a lot side, where there used to be a fish house;

there ’s now a bar and restaurant where a clam packing house used to be; and there ’s a

marine engine repa ir business where boats used to be able to tie up and store equipm ent.

"What we’re scared of is that they will make it all into condo s," she reiterated. "Lees has done

that, places in Florida and New England have done that...If you buy right next to a seafood

place, it’s like buying next to an airport - you know what’s there already. They are bas ically the

ones creating the problem ." She doesn’t know of any current concre te proposa ls to this effect,

but "lots of times, the way it happens is that you just hear it after the fact."

She also feels that the press hasn’t treated the local commercial fishing industry very

well, and that it is biased against the fishermen. She said this was fairly apparent at recent

rezoning meetings where it seemed that the reporters only wrote about the things they liked

and not what really happened in its entire ty. (Local papers include the Salisbury Daily Times,

the Coastal Dispatch, the Beachcomber Times Press and Ocean City Toda y.) On the positive

side, she thinks that the head of the county commission is listening to both sides and is

dealing with the issue in a fair way. She didn’t know when a final decision about the rezoning

wou ld be made. She said that some tourists do take an interest in the commercial fishing

industry there she said they get a lot of calls from out-of-towners asking when the boats will be

coming in. She said that company employees will gladly show people around and have hosted

some field trips from local schools. Apparen tly, cruise boats also point out the commercial

fishing indus try.

As in Shinnecock, NY, Barnegat Light, NJ, Wanchese, NC and other fishing

communities that rely on an inlet for access to the sea, West Ocean City has experienced

problems with shoaling that can make it imposs ible for big boats to go back and forth from sea

to harbor. But this informant said that the Army Corps of Engineers has been good about

keeping the inlet open. She echoed the opinion of people interviewed at these other inlet

harbors, that if it were not for commercial fishing, dredging wou ld be way down on the Corps’

priority list, and that recreational fishermen thereby benefit from having the commercial fishers

around. She also said that there isn’t much tension loca lly between the two camps in any case.

The second packing house takes in local catches and also occasionally works with a

tilefish fisher from another port. A couple of fishermen who were hanging out or getting ready

to go fishing from this com pany’s docks were the chief inform ants at this location. The land

use issue is very much on fishe rmen’s minds in West Ocean City. One fisherman who owns

and operates a trawler from the harbor mostly wanted to talk about land use and about

problems with the regulations, the sports fishing industry and other commercial fishermen.

Rich people are buying up all the land. It’s not only the National Marine Fisheries Service but

the local developers are killing us too.” He cited the same changes in land use around the

harbor that the previous informant had as well as the fear of condominiums being built. He

added that the sports fishing boats take up less space in the harbor (diagonal parking vs. the

parallel parking that the large fishing vess els do) while they can pay five times as much for it.

He also feels that with the ITQ system, all the people in the clam industry are rich and can pay

92

three times as much as what the other fishing boats can pay for their dock space. Given that

dock space is allocated via a system of sealed bids, the clam boats are going to win out, he

said. W ith the new clamming operation that’s moving in, with at least a couple of additional big

clam boats, he thinks that commercial fishermen like himself are in danger of getting pushed

out of the harbor.

This cap tain used to fish out of Wildwood, NJ, and his fam ily has been in fishing for

generations. He moved because he liked it better in the Ocean City area and had been fishing

there off and on when he was based in New Jers ey. He used to do some longlining, but now

mostly drags, and works with one crew mem ber. He usually fishes for flounder, squ id and

trout. He has a bluefish perm it but doesn’t target that species because of its low value. For the

last couple of months he has been going out for squ id but is about to change over to flounder.

His estima te of boats that usually work out of the harbor is that there are close to 30 boats that

are 60' and under, 4 clam boats and 10 or 12 trawlers or longliners, all of which are over 60'.

He said there are 7 draggers that have flounder permits, and if the quota is divided by

that number, it doesn’t even come to 100 lb. per boat. So, he ends up doing a lot of fishing for

bait as well, mostly skate and horseshoe crabs, though he complained about “the bird lovers”

who have restricted the taking of the latter. In the fall he will do trout (weakfish) fishing, though

that only came to 21 days last year. He mostly packs at the larger fish house, as do most of

the other draggers. He said that most of the sea bass, conch and other gill net catches are

packed at the smaller company where he was watching boats unload that day.

According to this inform ant, most of the fishermen around the harbor are locals, with

some coming from Delaware and just a few from Virginia. He himself lives between West

Ocean City and Salisbury, MD.

There is no seafood festival in town. The nearest one is in Crisfield, on the

Chesapeake Bay (see below). The Harborside Inn is the popular hangout for fishers but there

is no special place for coffee in Ocean City.

Fisheries Profile, Chesapeake Bay

Virtua lly all of the other fishing activity in Maryland centers on the Chesapeake Bay

and its tributaries. It is based in numerous sm all and dispersed landing areas, and focuses on

the classic bay fisheries with blue crabs and oysters taking the lead (Table MD-OM 1). This is

the home of the Chesapeake Bay "waterm en." For all ports in Maryland excluding Ocean City,

blue crabs represented 71.5% of the value and oysters 12.6% of the value. The only other

sizeable fishery in 1998 was for striped bass (5.9% of the value), thanks to the recovery of that

species after a long moratorium. True to the tradition of watermen and baymen in the Mid-

Atlantic, the diversity of species caught is extre me ly high: 57 species, ranging from terrapin

and snapper turtles, crappies, carp, bullheads, and alewives, to name a few of the brackish

water and anadromous species, to soft clams, horseshoe crabs, eels, lobsters, sturgeons,

sunfishes, and sharks.

Tab le MD-OM1: Major Species, Other Maryland Ports, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES (>2%):

MARYLAND OTHER THAN

OCEAN CITY Lbs (%)

Bass, Striped 5.6

Crabs, Blue 61.6

Croaker, Atlan tic 2.4

Value (%)

5.9

71.5

0.7

Menhaden 8.9 0.7

Oysters 4.9 12.6

93

Gizzard Shad 3.5 0.9

W hite Perch 2.9 1.5

Soft Clam 0.4 2.1

Catfish 4.7 1.6

Total Species Landed: 57

Total Landings, 1998: 50,094,300 lbs.

Total Value, 1998: $60,832,500

Species Relevant to MAFMC according to value in 1998: Bluefish (0.1%), Butterfish (0.0%),

Summer Flounder (0.2%), Atlan tic Mackerel (0.0%), Scup (0.0%), Black Sea Bass (0.0%,

Smooth Dogfish (0.0%), Spiny Dogfish (0.0%).

The NMFS weighout data for the Maryland ports beyond Ocean City did not include

much information on gear types; 94% of the value and over 85% of the poundage in 1998 was

attributed to "unknown" gear types. Accordingly, we do not include information on gear types

for Other Maryland ports. However, it is well known that crab pots, trot lines, oyster tongs and

rakes, some oyster dredges, and fish pound -nets are important gears, as well as fyke nets,

seines, and gillnets.

The field portion of this study did not explore the many waterman communities of

Maryland and Virgin ia because very sm all quantities are caught of the species of MAFMC

concern. To verify this and learn more about the Chesapeake Bay fisheries of Maryland, we

visited Cris field and Cambridge, MD and interviewed Larry Simns, director of the Maryland

W aterm en’s Association. About 6,000 watermen are represented by the Maryland

W aterm an’s Association and about 3,500 of them active ly use the organization’s services.

According to Simns, Crisfield, Deal Island and Hoo per’s Island are most likely the

places where significant catches of ocean species--trout [weak fish], flounder, croakers and

possibly sea bass--are landed. (However, NMFS landings data also show that Chesapeake

Bay watermen might bring in significant catches of ocean species to Smith Creek, Island

Creek, Herring Creek, Flood Creek, Breton Bay and St. Patr ick’s Creek). He said that

flounder and trout are not caught north of Tilghmans and added that ocean species are

brought in on the Virgin ia side of the Potomac as well. A fish house in Coburn also dea ls in

ocean products. Another informant at a packing house in Cambridge, MD, said that, in his

opinion, the best place to go wou ld be Crisfield, given its location on the bay at the

southwestern-most corner of Maryland, and he suggested the two fish houses that

researchers visited.

Somerset County Profile (includes Cris field and other ports of the eastern shore of

Chesapeake Bay within Maryland)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Somerset Coun ty had a total population of 23,440. Men

outnumbered women by about 6%. Rural population was 87.7% of the total population,

though only 3.8% of the total population lived on farms.

94

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Approxim ately 61% of Som erse t’s Coun ty population was white, according to the 1990

Census. The next largest group was black, at 38.2%. There were sm all numbers of

American Indians, Asians, and Hispanics. Only 219 people in the county were foreign born,

and 76.5% of the native population was born in Maryland. The most prevalent ancestries

reported were English (4,140 people); German (2,586 people); and United States or American

(2,581 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest at 7,477 people, or 31.9%. Population under

18 years of age was 20.2% of the population and 14.9% was 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 7,977 households in Somerset Cou nty, 70.0% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 72.9% contained married couples and 21.2% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.48 people lived in each household, but householders living alone occupied

25.7% of the households.

Of the 7,977 households, 27.8% were renter occupied. There were 1,416 vacant housing

units in the county, 445 of which were used for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The

homeowner vacancy rate was 2.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.5%. The median value

of owner occupied housing units was $55,600 in 1990 and median rent was $230. One -unit

detached housing comprised 82.5% of all housing units and mobile homes and trailers 20.1%

Educational Trends

In Somerset Cou nty, 61.2% of the population age 25 or older was a high school gradua te or

higher; 9.6% had a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $10,232 and median

household income was $23,379. Of the 19,724 people for whom poverty status was

determined, 16.0% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 19,266 people age 16 or older in Somerset County, 51.1% were in the labor force. Of

these, 99.4% were in the civilian labor force, of which 8.4% were unemployed. More recent

unemployment figures for the county were 9.6% in 1997 and 9.6% in 1998. The county shows

slight seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt, however unemployment large ly decreased in 1999.

For example, in Jan of 1998 unemployment was 12.0%, however in January of 1999

unemployment was only 9.2%.

Employment Industries

Of the 8,962 employed people age 16 or older, 870 or 9.7% were in the agriculture, forestry,

and fisheries industries sectors. 278 listed fishing as their occupation. The largest sector of

all was retail at 15.6% followed by administrative support occupations, including cleric al, at

13.5%. The next largest occupations were service occupations, except protective and

household; precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations; educational services; sales

occupations; and professional specialty occupations. Government workers comprised 23.6%

of the work force, and there were 1,104 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 265 men and 13 women engaged in fishing as an

occupation. Of the 265 men, 232 were white and 26 were black. All 13 women were white.

Field Observations and Interviews, Crisfield, MD, July 1999

95

Cris field has a very spacious harbor and lots of docks compared to most of the other

fishing ports visited in the Mid-Atlan tic region. There are a fair number of recreational marinas

and pleasure boats as well. It is evident that African Americans make up a large part of the

local population.

All but one of the local packing houses deal exc lusive ly with crabs. Even with the

large volume of crabs being taken in, an informant at one of the crab houses said that

“crabbing is not like it used to be” in Crisfield. He said there are up to 100 full-timers and part-

timers who go crabbing out of Crisfield, especia lly in the fall. Because the watermen are so

scattered around the various inlets of Chesapeake Bay, the crabs used to be brought in via a

number of large (70') “buy boats” or “freight boats” that picked up catches from throughout the

bay and delivered them to Crisfield. Now there is only one buy boat that works the bay.

One packing house dea ls with finfish. Our inform ant, an employee whose son

founded the com pany, said that crabs are the com pany’s biggest produc t, but it does take in

rockfish (striped bass), sea trout, croakers (hardhead), spot and perch. He said that some of

this (trout and hardhead) is bycatch in the crab pots. There is some gill netting for ocean

species, but that mostly happens in the fall. Tangier Island (Virginia) watermen have pound

nets and this is how they catch most of the ocean species. He thought that Tangier Island

might be the biggest source of ocean species fished in the bay. He also said that a six-foot

tarpon had been caught rece ntly near Tangier Island (probab ly because the water

temperature and salinity of the bay has been high) and that pompano and barracuda are also

known to have been caught in the bay (he added that tarpon are often caught off Cape

Charles, VA, as well). According to this inform ant, the Tangier Island watermen send most of

their ocean catches to New York because they can get better prices there. When they do

come to Crisfield, they usually send the fish in via ma il boats. (In February 2000 we also

learned from a Tangier Island fisherman that many local men sign onto ocean-going fishing

vess els out of Virgin ia and other ports).

The company has a who lesa le and retail market on the highway in town, where it sells

ocean species from the bay (about 10% of the business) and other ocean species that are

bought elsewhere (usu ally in West Ocean City, but they often have to go farther afield).

Species include tunas, swordfish, grouper, snapper, mackerel and occasionally sturgeon.

In addition to taking in hardshe ll crabs, this company has a large shedder business;

there are 428 “floats” (actu ally, shedder tanks housed in open-air sheds) that take an average

of 300 crabs each. In addition, many of the watermen have their own floats in the creeks or

rent floats from this company and then sell the soft she lls to the same company when they are

ready for market. This dealer also takes in shedders from Delaware Bay (at the time of the

research visit, that’s where most of the com pany’s shedders were from, even though the

informant said they were down in number from last year at the same time).

The company ships live crabs by truck along the eastern seaboard, from Connecticut

to South Carolina. It also ships frozen hard crabs and live soft she lls nationwide via air freight.

He said that oystering used to be a big industry in Maryland and Virginia, but no

longer is because of the depletion of stocks. In fact, much of the Cris field harbor is built on

oyster she lls constituting “reclaimed” land.

The informant here said that approxim ately 15-20% of the Cris field population is

involved in waterman industries, which is much less than in the past. A lot of it is seasonal

work; for fish plant workers, it is perhaps only 5 to 6 months out of the year. The com pany’s

peak time is early spring through mid-sum mer, at the beginning of soft crab season and the

end of oyster season. At that point, it employs 70 people. Low time is December to March,

when there are only 20 to 30 employees. He said that the workers com plain a lot about there

96

being either too many hours to work or too few. When they are laid off, workers generally go

on unem ployme nt.

The company no longer engages in crab picking. The informant said that it no longer

pays off for the company because 60% of the crabmeat now sold in the US is imported from

other countries, where workers are paid a lot less and health standards are lower. He said that

a local company just stopped its crab picking operation. Another still picks, but the informant at

the crab /fin fish house thinks they won ’t be able to do it much longer:“you can ’t buy crabs

cheap enough to make it worthwhile.” The company in question currently employs 10 to 12

Mexican migra nts to do the picking. The informant said he considers crab picking “an art” that

used to be done almost exc lusive ly by African Americans.

His son ’s company employs only local workers, 50-60% of whom are black, but in the

future may bring in Mexican migra nts because, according to the inform ant, they have a better

work ethic than the locals. Mos tly women work on the crabs and fin fish at the company and

mostly men work on the oysters. The informant said that men mostly work on the boats

because even with hydraulic machinery “it’s not wom en’s work.”

Like many other people working in commercial fishing, the informant said that the

regulations are “destroying his busines s.” He thinks there have always been variations in the

number of crabs and other species that are caught in the bay and that this is prim arily due to

weather and migration patterns rather than overfishing. He talked about the

“fishteria(Pfiesteria)” disease scare a few years ago, and feels that “the media and politicians

do more damage to the fishing industry than anybody else.”

He said it’s hard to say how many watermen go in and out of Crisfield, but estimated

that 500-600 work in all of Somerset Coun ty and on Tangier Island. He said that most of the

local boats dock at a marina in town (that is prim arily recreational), and the rest of Cris field’s

extensive docks are only used by the watermen to unload their catches.

Histo rically, there ’s been a lot of conflict between Virgin ia and Maryland watermen that

has even included shootings and killings, according to this inform ant. An incident that he said

happened shortly before the research visit concerned the theft of shedders from Smith Island,

Maryland. Rumor had it that someone from Tangier Island (which is in Virginia) did it.

The informant said that there hasn’t been much conflict yet in Cris field regarding

waterfront land use, though he can see the possibility of it coming. Rec ently he had gone to a

zoning board meeting where the possibility of rezoning part of the waterfront to build

condominiums was discussed. He fears that, if this happens, the crab industry will be in

troub le because condo owners will com plain about the sm ell.

The Cris field Chamber of Comm erce sponsors an annual National Hard Crab Derby

in September (this year’s was the 52nd) during which there are a number of crab races

(including the Gov erno r’s Cup, where crabs from other states, or local crabs adopted by other

states, are pitted against one another).

Hangouts: Gordon ’s (break fast, lunch and pool table) and Tities

W e were unable to visit other fishing communities of the Chesapeake Bay region

during the summer of 1999. In March 2000 we brief ly visited several communities on the

Eastern Shore of Maryland which are involved in the processing side of the surf clam and

ocean quahog indus try, including Easton, Nanticoke, and Pocomoke City, Maryland (as well

as Milford, Delaware, Norfolk, Virginia, the New Jersey sites noted before, and others,

including New Bedford, Massach usetts). Processing is one of the most important ways that

Mid-Atlan tic federal waters fisheries link to the socio-economics of coastal and inland

communities. W e had interviews with processing plant manage rs and tours through the

97

plants, for a separa te study. Future studies of the “fishing communities” of the Mid-Atlan tic

should include these kinds of communities as well as the “ports” which have been the focus of

this study.

98

6. Virginia's Fishing Ports

Virgin ia has one of the highest fish landings in the United States, large ly because of

the menhaden which are landed and processed in Reedville, Northumberland Cou nty, on the

western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Virgin ia is also known for its waterman fisheries for

oysters, blue crabs, etc., ma inly in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries but also in

numerous sm all bays along the Atlan tic coast of the southern Delmarva peninsula. There are

six major ports where large, ocean-going fishing vess els unload their catches: Hampton,

Newport News, Virgin ia Beach, Seaford, and Chinco teague ,. In the U.S. census, the first

three are large ly within the Metropolitan Statistical Area of Nor folk-Virgin ia Beach-New port

News. These "Hampton Roads" ports are within a major tourist region, anchored by

Chincoteague, Williamsburg, and Virgin ia Beach. The military is also a large presence, as are

numerous heavy and high tech industries. Chincoteague is one of several ports where local

seafood businesses depend on migratory fishing vess els from other regions, such as North

Carolina or Massachusetts, for landings. The highest value product of the ocean fisheries is

the sea scallop; hard clams (quahogs), blue crabs, and oysters are the equivalent in the bays

and estuaries. "Shark fishing" for spiny and smo oth dogfish and by-catches of angler

(monkfish) have emerged in recent years as important fisheries in some ports.

This report first discusses the Hampton Roads region, then York Coun ty (including

Seaford); followed by two counties on the southern tip of the Delmarva Pen insu la

(Northampton and Accom ack). These account for over half of the state's landings in 1998

(Table VA-1), and virtua lly all of the ocean-going fisheries as distinct from bay fisheries. W e

include fisheries data for all other Virgin ia ports at the end.

Tab le VA-1: 1998 NMFS Weighout Landings by Port, Selected Virgin ia Ports8

Virginia Landings, 1998

PORT

Other Northumberland

Hampton

New port News

Virginia Beach/Lynhaven

Norfo lk

Seaford

Other York

Cape Charles

Oyster

Other Northampton

Wachapreague

Chincoteague

Other Accomack

% of Tota l, Lbs, not

Incl. Northumberland

$ of Tota l, $, not Incl.

Northumberland

85.4% lbs,

36.3% value

n.a. n.a.

9.9 11.7

7.0 22.6

9.6 6.1

0.6 0.6

1.2 7.2

6.6 4.8

2.0 1.1

1.2 0.8

7.2 5.2

0.2 0.3

1.1 1.1

12.1 10.6

Rest of Virginia 41.3 47.9

Table VA2 provides NMFS weighout data for Virginia ‘ports’. To protect

5 Northumberland County is the home of industrial fisheries, the high quantity, low unit value of which distort information information on other fisheries. Accordingly, in this table we report landings data for other ports as percentages of a total that excludes "Other Northumberland".

99

confidentiality, landings of less than 100,000 pounds or dollars are not included, but

the large number of places with such small landings is an important social fact about

the fisheries of Virginia. Like those of Maryland, North Carolina, and parts of New York

and New Jersey, they are very small-scale, part of the “waterman” or “bayman” life

style. It must be emphasized, how ever, that landings from fishing operations within

the three-m ile territorial sea or for fish, such as conch, for which Federal permits are

not required, do not always appear in the NMFS weighout data. This information is

reported to the Comm onwea lth of Virginia ’s Virginia Marine Resources Commission as

a condition of state permits (Fricke 1999, see below).

Table VA2: Landings by County and Port, Virginia, 1998

Note: Data for ports with less than 100,000 pounds or dollars in 1998 are omitted.

PORT NAME COUNTY LANDED

(LBS)

PERCEN

T (LBS)

PERCENT

VALUE

UNIDENTIFIED

OTHER ACCO MAC ACCO MAC 10,003,168 1.78% 7,493,144 6.77%

CHINCOTEAGUE ACCO MAC 900,910 0.16% 788,242 0.71%

WACHAPREAGUE ACCO MAC 173,012 0.03% 203,653 0.18%

OTHER CHARLES CITY CHARLES CITY

OTHER CHESTERFIELD CHESTERFIELD 582,747 0.10% 133,965 0.12%

OTHER CITY OF

CHESAPEAKE

CITY OF

CHESAPEAKE

HAMPTON CITY OF HAMPTON 8,079,599 1.44% 8,218,162 7.42%

NEWPORT NEWS CITY OF NEWPORT

NEWS

5,742,497 1.02% 15,945,730 14.41%

NORFOLK CITY OF NORFOLK 497,677 0.09% 405,861 0.37%

OTHER CITY OF

PORTSMOUTH

CITY OF

PORTSMOUTH

473,699 0.08% 365,002 0.33%

OTHER CITY OF

SUFFOLK

CITY OF SUFFOLK 451,158 0.08% 404,930 0.37%

VIRG INIA

BEACH/LYNNHAVEN

CITY OF VIRG INIA

BEACH

7,811,980 1.39% 4,272,786 3.86%

OTHER ESSEX ESSEX

GUNSTON COVE FAIRFAX

OTHER FAIRFAX FAIRFAX

LITTLE HUNTING CREEK FAIRFAX

OCC OQU AN BAY (F) FAIRFAX

OTHER GLOUCESTER GLOUCESTER 10,955,404 1.95% 6,589,134 5.95%

OTHER ISLE OF WIGHT ISLE OF WIGHT 409,193 0.07% 521,934 0.47%

OTHER JAMES CITY JAMES CITY 632,278 0.11% 428,778 0.39%

OTHER KING & QUEEN KING & QUEEN 100,088 0.02% 146,184 0.13%

OTHER KING GEORGE KING GEORGE 329,908 0.06% 145,482 0.13%

UPPER MACHODOC

CREEK

KING GEORGE

MAT HAIS POINT KING GEORGE

BARNESFIELD KING GEORGE

FAIRVIEW BEACH KING GEORGE

100

125,363 0.02% 103,837 0.09%

3,339,477 0.60% 1,742,170 1.57%

5,470,721 0.98% 3,170,510 2.86%

1,366,466 0.24% 1,235,115 1.12%

5,883,586 1.05% 3,649,280 3.30%

1,595,605 0.28% 767,279 0.69%

0.18% 584,858 0.53%

85.44% 40,187,290 36.31%

1,713,138 0.31% 398,510 0.36%

647,086 0.12% 353,406 0.32%

387,098 0.07% 114,319 0.10%

100,958 0.02% 108,512 0.10%

989,211

0.07% 287,679 0.26%

0.09% 261,941 0.24%

0.04% 128,502 0.12%

0.29% 1,305,308 1.18%

0.20% 255,801 0.23%

0.05% 205,855 0.19%

CUR RIOM AN BAY WESTMORELAND

GARDNER CREEK WESTMORELAND

POT OM AC CREEK (K.G.)

WILLIAMS CREEK

ROSIERS CREEK (K.G.)

WATERLOO

BELVEDERE BEACH

OTHER KING WILL IAM

OTHER LANCASTER

OTHER MATHEWS

OTHER MIDDLESEX

OTHER NEW KENT

OTHER NORTHAMPTON

CAPE CHARLES

OYSTER

OTHER

NORTHUMBERLAND

LITTLE WICOMICO

RIVER

KING GEORGE

KING GEORGE

KING GEORGE

KING GEORGE

KING GEORGE

KING WILL IAM

LANCASTER

MATHEWS

MIDDLESEX

NEW KENT

NORTHAMPTON

NORTHAMPTON

NORTHAMPTON

NORTHUMBERLAND 479,159,996

NORTHUMBERLAND

COAN RIVER NORTHUMBERLAND

HULL CREEK NORTHUMBERLAND

YEOCOMICO RIVER (N) NORTHUMBERLAND

MUNDY POINT NORTHUMBERLAND

KINGSCOTE CREEK NORTHUMBERLAND

HACK CREEK NORTHUMBERLAND

THE GLEBE NORTHUMBERLAND

KILLNECK CREEK NORTHUMBERLAND

OTHER VA NOT-SPECIFIED

OTHER PRINCE GEORGE PRINCE GEORGE

CHERRY HILL PRINCE WILL IAM

OCC OQU AN BAY (P.W .) PRINCE WILL IAM

OTHER PRINCE WILL IAM PRINCE WILL IAM

QUANTICO CREEK PRINCE WILL IAM

OTHER RICHMOND RICHMOND 383,730

POT OM AC CREEK (S) STAFFORD 497,168

WIDEWATER STAFFORD 234,869

OTHER STAFFORD STAFFORD

AQUIA CREEK STAFFORD

TOLSONS LANDING STAFFORD

OTHER SURRY SURRY

OTHER

WESTMORELAND

WESTMORELAND 1,625,388

NOMINI BAY WESTMORELAND 1,146,988

MONROE BAY WESTMORELAND 302,415

ROSIERS CREEK (W) WESTMORELAND

LOWER MACHODOC

CREEK

WESTMORELAND

KINSALE WESTMORELAND

BONUMS CREEK WESTMORELAND

RAGGED POINT

HOLLOW

WESTMORELAND

YEOCOMICO RIVER (W) WESTMORELAND

101

MATTOX CREEK WESTMORELAND

SHANNON BRANCH WESTMORELAND

JACKSON CREEK WESTMORELAND

BRANSON COVE WESTMORELAND

TIDWELLS WESTMORELAND

HORNER BEACH WESTMORELAND

CITY OF SEAFORD YORK 1,009,908 0.18% 5,092,848 4.60%

OTHER YORK YORK 5,405,249 0.96% 3,366,134 3.04%

TOT AL 560,831,406 100.00% 110,690,207 100.00%

Source: NMFS Weigh-Out Data.

Note: Data for locations with less than 100,000 pounds or dollars in 1998 are omitted.

Some landings from comm onwea lth waters or unregulated fisheries may not be

included.

Norfo rk/Virgin ia Beach /Newp ort News Metropolitan Statistical Area (includes most of the

"Hampton Roads" fishing area, including Lynhaven, Hampton, Newport News, Phoebus and

Norfolk)

Population

According to the 1990 census, Norfolk, Virgin ia Beach, and the Newport News Metropolitan

area had a total population of 1,396,107. Females outnumber males by a sm all percentage.

Urban population was 94.8% and rural population was 5.2%, though less than 1% lived on

farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the population, 67.8% were white, followed by black at 28.5%. Individ uals of Hisp anic

Origin, of any race, and Asian each made up approxim ately 2.5% of the population. There

were sm all numbers of American Indians, Eskimo, and Aleuts. Only 3.5% of the population

was foreign born, and of the native population, 40% were born in Virginia. The most prevalent

ancestries reported were German (242,781 people); English (216,496 people); and Irish

(186,686 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest, at 485,666 people or 34.8%. Population

under 18 was 26.4% and 9.0% was 65 or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 493,536 households in Norfolk, Virgin ia Beach, and the Newport News Metropolitan

area, 72.6% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily households, 63.5% contained married

couples and 18.1% were headed by sing le women. An average of 2.69 people were in each

household, but 21.1% of the total householders lived alone.

Of the 493,536 households, 41.1% were renter occupied. There were 43,565 vacant housing

units, 3,197 of which were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The homeowner

vacancy rate was 3.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.3%. The median value of owner

occupied houses was $87,000 in 1990 and median rent was $398.00. One -unit detached

housing comprised 56.3% of all housing units and mobile homes and trailers only 3.6%.

Educational Trends

102

In Norfolk, Virgin ia Beach, and the Newport News Metropolitan area, 79.1% of the population

25 years or older was a high school gradua te or higher; 20.1% held a bachelor ’s degree or

higher.

Income

According to the 1989 census, per capita income for these areas was $13,495 and median

household income was $30,841. Of the 1,324,970 people for whom the poverty status was

determined in 1989, 151,840, or 11.5%, were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 1,062,615 people 16 or older in Norfolk, Virgin ia Beach, and the Newport News

Metropolitan area, 70.5% were in the labor force. Of these, 75.2% were in the civilian labor

force, of which 7.2% were unemployed. More recent unemployment figures for these regions

were 4.8% in 1997 and 3.5% in 1998. These regions do not show large seasonal shifts in

unem ployme nt, although fewer people appear to be unemployed in October through

Decem ber.

Employment Industries

Of the 698,999 employed people 16 years or older, 7,474, or 1.3% were in the agriculture,

forestry, and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector of all was retail, at 20.4%, followed

by Administrative support at 15.6%. The next largest occupations were professional specialty

occupations; precision produc t, craft and repa ir occupations; executive, administrative, and

managerial occupations; sales occupations; and service occupations, except protective and

household. Government workers comprised 24.5% of the work force, and there were 27,886

self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

In Hampton, according to the 1990 Census, there were 122 males and no females engaged in

fishing as an occupation. Of the men, 87 were white, 4 were black, and 27 were Asian and

Pac ific Islanders. In Newport News City, there were 24 males and 15 females engaged in

fishing as an occupation. Of the men all 24 were white; among the women 4 were white and

11 were black. There were also 8 fishing vessel captains or officers, all white men. In Norfolk,

32 people engaged in fishing as an occupation, all of them were white males. In Virgin ia

Beach City, 62 people engaged in fishing as an occupation, all of them white males. There

were also 26 fishing vessel captains or officers, all of them white men.

103

Fisheries Profile, Virginia Beach/ Lynhaven

Most of the commercial fishing activity in Virgin ia Beach occurs in the Lynhaven

section, along Long Creek, which empties into Lynhaven Bay and even tually Chesapeake

Bay.Two active fede rally permitted dealers in this port also operate as packing houses for two

out-or-town dealers. In the past, there also was significant activity at Rudee Inlet on the

Atlan tic side of the city, but now there are only 3 or 4 commercial boats that work out of there.

The commercial fishery at Virgin ia Beach/Lynhaven is inlet-dependent and pressured

by competition for waterfront from tourist-related development and recreational boaters and

fishers. The major gear type used as reported to the NMFS is the sink gill-net, used to catch a

large number of species including bluefish, striped bass, Atlan tic croaker, summer flounder,

shad, dogfish, weakfish and spot (Table VA-VB1). Drift and stake gill nets are also used, the

latter for spiny dogfish and bluefish among other species. This is also a center of pot fishing,

for blue crabs, eels, conchs (whelks) and fish. The fish catches were ma inly black sea bass

and tautog. Handlines accounted for 9% of the landed value in 1998, mostly from black sea

bass and summer flounder catches, but also striped bass, tautog, tilefish, tunas, and others.

Pound nets accounted for 3.3% of the value in 1998; species included striped bass, bluefish,

butterfish, Atlan tic croaker, summer flounder, Spanish macke rel, spot, and weakfish.

Tab le VA-VB1: Landings by Gear Type, Virgin ia Beach/Lynhaven, 1998

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)GEAR TYPE: VIRG INIA

BEACH/LYNHAVEN

By Hand 0.0

Comm on Seine, Haul Seine 0.7

Dredge, conch 0.3

Dredge, Crab 0.8

Gill Net, Drift 1.3

Gill Net, Sink 70.1

Gill Net, Stake 0.2

Handline 2.0

Pots & Traps, Blue Crab 12.9

Pots & Traps, Conch 3.7

Pots & Traps, Eel 0.1

Pots & Traps, Fish 2.8

Pound Net 5.1

0.0

0.7

0.9

1.0

1.0

43.3

0.1

9.2

18.3

14.1

0.2

7.8

3.3

0.0Tongs & Grabs, Clam, Patent 0.0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 7,812,000 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $4,272,800 dollars

Note: "0.0" means some activity but less than .06%

By species blue crab represented the highest value (19%). Next was black sea bass,

which comprised 16% of 1998 landed value, mostly from handlining and fish pots (Table VA-

VB2). Gillnetting for dogfish is another very important fishe ry. Atlan tic croaker and striped

bass are significant catches from the gill-net, handline, and pound-net fisheries, as is spot.

Channeled whelk, caught in conch pots, made up 11% of value. The total number of species,

though, is as always in this region very large: 65.

104

Tab le VA-VB22: Landings by Major Species, Virgin ia Beach/Lynhaven, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES:

VIRG INIA BEACH/LYNHAVEN

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

Striped Bass 4.4 11.0

Blue Crab 13.7 19.1

Atlan tic Croaker ** **

Spiny Dogfish ** **

Black Sea Bass 4.2 15.6

Spot 14.1 8.8

Channeled W helk 2.8 11.2

Conch 1.4 5.3

Other Fish, Industrial 2.2 0.3

Number of Species: 65

Note: ** indicates confidential data due to sm all number of businesses involved.

Other species of MAFMC interest by percentage value, 1998: Bluefish (0.7), Butterfish (0.7),

Summer Flounder (0.3), Atlan tic Mackerel (**), Scup (**), Dogfish, Other (0.3), Dogfish,

Smooth (**), Tilefish (**), Loligo Squ id (**).

Field Observations and Interviews, Virginia Beach/Lynhaven, July 1999

In Lynhaven there are three centers of activity associated with packing houses and

docking areas. The most extensive docking area is at a predom inant ly recreational marina off

West Great Neck and Buccaneer Roads on Long Creek. There were about 10 commercial

boats docked there in July 1999. The packing house is currently run out of a trailer and is

owned by two local men. It essentia lly operates as a cooperative for those who sell there. A

local fisherman said that this packing house's goal is to have the boats make as much prof it

as possible with the company only taking 15% off the top.

The commercial docks as well as the entire marina are owned by a corporation which

is currently rebuilding the docks and pouring a concre te boardwalk. The corporation is also

erecting a new building that will have the packing house as well as two stores as tenants. The

recreational marina is being expanded to 214 slips. When asked if he thought this new

arrangement wou ld work for the commercial indus try, given the predominance of recreational

fishing at this marina and in the area in general, a local fisherman raised his eyebrows and

said, "If it doesn't work out, we have no place to go." He thinks that development in the area is

out of con trol. But he does not think they will get shut out com plete ly because the recreational

industry needs the commercial boats if Lynhaven inlet is to be periodica lly dredged by the

Army Corps of Engineers." If there is not a certa in percentage of commercial boats that use

that inlet, local businesses will have to pay to have it dredged.

On the other hand, he feels that the Virgin ia Beach area is one of the most hos tile to

commercial fishers. He complained in particular about the gasoline tax that is being planned

for the metropolitan area. This will dispropo rtiona tely hurt businesses like his that consume a

lot of gas. He said that homeow ners on the other side of the docks are "adamantly against the

building of the new marina. I think they use us as a ploy against the owner." At the same time,

he mentioned that a reporter from The Virgin ia Pilot has done a few “nice pieces” on

commercial fishers in the area. This informant comes from a fishing fam ily (his father and

unc le used to own a construction business and decided to sell in order to establish

commercial fishing as a fam ily business). Dogfish comprises about 40% of his catch. “We

caught 6 million pounds here in 1996.” He is very worried about the upcoming dogfish

regulations. “We do this in order to make money. If we can ’t make money, we won ’t be into

the fishery.” He said they used to fish for shad down along the oceanfront and catch 10 or 12

105

rockfish(striped bass) a year. They used floatnets that were 300 yards long. He said that now

“58% of what we catch is regulatory bycatch. W e have to throw it back .” He believes,

however, that there are more rockfish now than ever before, so many that they are depleting

other edible species. He said this causes him to go 30 miles offshore for “horn dog,”

otherwise he spends too much time taking rockfish out of his nets. It only takes three days to

catch the quarterly quota of flounder. For smo oth dogfish he uses 6-inch by 90mm mesh, 20-

30 mesh deep. He said they save a lot of their winter catch for bait (e.g. sand shark heads).

He complained about the "bad science" being done by those that estima te the stocks.

He also complained about the lack of coordination between state and federal regulators. “The

federal government is trying to push you back to the bay, where the state has already

regulated us out.” He fishes 200-300 conch pots in the summer and he tries to have three

people on the boat when he fishes conch pots and gillnets. He has five crew mem bers in the

winter when he nets for smo oth dogfish.

As is the case elsewhere in the indus try, it is hard to get and keep a good crew. The

same fisherman said, “One guy has been with me for six years, and that’s unusual!” He said

that all of the captains and crews from their docks are from the local area. He said there was

no one who used migrant labor. His father fishes for spot, croaker, trout, striped bass, crab

and dogfish. There is one boat that pots for seabass.

He said they are limited in their ability to expand their business or even to switch the

type of fishing they do. “It is difficult to transfer perm its to a different size boat. Perm its can ’t

be transferred for more than a 10% change in length or a 20% change in horsep ower.” He

thinks it is difficult to get fishermen to band together for their own good. He said most are too

spread out. He thinks a better strategy wou ld be to take a sm all amount out of every

paycheck in order to pay a lobbyist.

Two more sm all docks/packing houses are located nearby. The manager of one of

them was not willing to be interviewed saying "we'd rather you got your information from the

VMRC [the Virgin ia Marine Resources Comm ission, which has respon sibility for fisheries

management in Virginia]." The other principal fish house in Lynhaven has a local retail market

and restaurant attached to it. Five boats, each less than 40' in length, were docked there

during the research visit.

Local bar/han gout: Reef Restaurant or the Corner Market Restaurant. But, “not too

many of us hang out together, and there ’s not too many to hang out with," according to the

same fisherman.

Rudee Inlet

There are only 3 or 4 commercial boats still working out of Rudee Inlet. He said there

is one fisherman who hooks and lines and is a retired restaurant owner. An informant at a

packing house in Hampton said that recreational interests were successful in forcing most of

the commercial fishers out of Rudee Inlet. (Note: in 1993 we reported 24 sm all lobster boats at

Rudee Inlet: p. 19).

Fisheries Profile, Newp ort News, VA

Sea scalloping is the principal fishery of Newport News, accounting for 72% of landed

value in 1998. Scallopers use both dredges and bottom otter trawls (Table VA-NN1). Another

fishery is finfish dragging (8.2% of value, 24.5% of landings) for a large variety of species.

Summer flounder, angler, and black sea bass are landed in significant quantities (Table VA-

NN2). Sm all sca le inshore and bay fisheries are part of the waterman complex. They include

106

clamming (hard clams or quahogs) and oystering using dredges, patent tongs, tongs and

rakes; drift and sink gill-netting; pot-fishing and dredging for crabs (blue crabs were 28% of

landings, 7% of value) and oysters; pot fishing for conch and eels and seining.

Tab le VA-NN1: Landings by Gear Type, Newport News, VA, 1998

GEAR TYPES, NEWPORT NEWS LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

Comm on Seine, Haul Seine

Dredge, Clam

Dredge, Crab

Dredge, Oyster

Dredge, Sea Scallop

Gill Net, Drift

Gill Net, Sink

Handline

Pots/Traps, Blue Crab

Pots/Traps, Conch

Pots/Traps, Eel

Tongs/Grabs, Oyster

Tongs/Grabs, Clam

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Fish

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Other

0.0 0.0

0.0

1.4

0.0

32.9

0.0

1.0

0.0

26.4

0.0

0.1

0.5

2.4

26.4

0.0

0.0

0.4

0.0

59.7

0.0

0.3

0.0

7.1

0.0

0.0

0.6

6.0

10.3

0.0

15.5Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Scallop 8.7

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 5,742,500 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $15,945,700 dollars

Tab le VA-NN2: Landings by Major Species, Newport News, VA, 1998

LBS. (%)MAJOR SPECIES: NEWPORT

NEWS, VA

Crab, Blue 27.7

Flounder, Summer 19.8

Quahog 2.4

Scallop, Sea 34.4

Sea Bass, Black 2.4

Angler 7.0

VALUE (%)

7.3

8.6

6.1

72.1

0.9

3.0

Number of Species: 59

Other species of MAFMC interest, by percentage value 1998: Bluefish (0.2), Butterfish (0.0),

Scup (0.0), Smooth Dogfish (0.0), Tilefish (0.0), Loligo Squ id (0.4).

Field Observations and Interviews, Newp ort News, VA, July 1999

There are 6 commercial fishing businesses in Newport News, all located within or

near a seafood industrial park on the city's sm all boat harbor.

107

W e talked with an employee at one of the packing houses. He said that rece ntly

there has been an increase in smaller, faster boats in the Hampton Roads area. Researchers

saw more than 25 boats smaller than 40 feet in length docked near the mou th of the harbor.

The informant said even the larger boats now often steam out only 20-30 miles before

returning back to the dock. The informant used to work at a commercial fish house in

Wanchese and established in 1995 the packing house in Newport News where he now works.

The business also runs two factory ships off the coast of Argentina. They used to have two

longliners, but they were major losses. They have one 120-foot longliner that has been sitting

idle at the dock for the past two years.

He said that local trawlers bring him summer flounder, gray trout, croaker, bluefish,

sea bass, porgies, squid, Atlan tic macke rel, butterfish, and scallops. Most of the landed

weight used to be scallops, but this is no longer the case. The boats go out on 30 to 40-m ile

trips. When scalloping they go for 14 to 15 days. When fishing they go for 7 days. Right now

they are going out for day trips because of quota limitations, according to the inform ant. "They

spend more time coming and going than working ," he said. At present they pack four of their

own trawlers (1 dragger and 3 scallopers) as well as 8 other owner-operated boats. The

number of owner-operators that use this particular dock pack varies seasonally. Most of the

com pany's who lesa le product is sent to New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston and

Florida. It sells some bait to Japanese markets.

He said there are 50 to 60 boats working out of the Sm all Boat Harbor that scallop

and fluke -- they retool for each season. He estimated that the total catch brought into the

harbor is 65% fluke, 25% scallops and 10% bycatch.

An issue identified by this informant is the effect of regulations (and decline in fish

catches more generally) on the quality of labor available. He said the packing house no longer

stays open long enough to keep good employees. Many of its workers come in "off the street."

He blames the regulations for "destroying our business. W e've become machines, not a

busines s." He has a lot of people applying for work at the packing house, but he has not had

the product to keep them busy.

Getting and keeping good crew is also a problem. He said the captains wou ld rather

hire local "drunks" than neoph yte fishermen because they've done the work before. "W e hire

some of the worst that are out there. W e cou ld keep them busy if the government wou ld let

us." Most captains and crews have other jobs (e.g. carp entry) and fish on other boats. He

said that problems with getting good crew have worsened and that they may be more serious

for fishing businesses than dealing with the regulations. He added that they can't afford to

train new help because they lose produc tivity when they do this.

His crew mem bers are mostly loca l. He mentioned a law that prohibits American

boats from having more than 25% of their crew as non-US citizens. He did say there are

some Mexican captains in the area and 1 or 2 black captains. He said there have been a few

fem ale crew in the past. Some women may still be on current crews.

This person wanted mostly to talk about regulations. He said that the biggest problem

is the way stock asses sme nts are conducted. He thinks that true stock asses sme nts will

never be achieved, but that it's a good way for scientists to keep their jobs. He was frustrated

because the "econom ic impact guys" promised more money per pound with the scallop

regulations, but the regulations instead took away their market, and the prices have bottomed

out. He was also frustrated by the flounder regulations. Not only is their quota sm all, but

because of the size limitation they are having a hard time catching the portion-s ize flounder

that restaura nts want. W hile imports are not affected by these size regulations, the local

flounder caught is too big for the optimal portion size. "It's a crying shame what the

government has done," he said. He also believes that scallops from Georges Bank are now

108

too large to be marketed effectively, after being off limits to commercial fishermen for too long

a time. "The econom ic impact is disastrous," he said.

He thinks there should be a watchdog group over NMFS. He estimated that the

NMFS stock asses sme nts are three years behind actual stock fluctuations. He thinks that the

current quota system creates a mad-house effect at the packing houses when boats rush after

their quotas. "Quotas aren't helping the stocks; they're just causing more to be thrown

overboard," he said. He thinks regulators should focus on input rather than output. He said

that captains need mu ltiple perm its to survive but that the regulations have limited their ability

to diversify. He added that boats have had to sit for too long, and that "when they sit, they

need more repairs."

Fisheries Profile, Norfolk, VA

The commercial fishery of Norfolk, VA today is actually typical of the more rural

waterman communities. Only a few fish houses are left to buy from local fishers; other docks

and wholesalers have closed down, and one wholesaler has changed to a retail store and

restaura nt. The fishery is a sm all inshore and bay fishe ry. Principal gears used are crab pots

(55% of value), crab dredges (10%), clam patent tongs and rakes (4%), handlines (10%) and

sink gill-nets (12%). Other gears are haul seines, conch dredges, and eel and fish pots.

Striped bass (10% of value) are caught with gill-nets, handlines and seines, as are Atlan tic

croaker (4% of value) and other estuarine and anadromous species. The sm all black sea bass

fishery here (2.2% of value) is carried out with handlines, as is the summer flounder fishery

(2.1%). Blue crabs make up two-thirds of the value of Norfo lk's catch (64%); hard clams or

quahogs account for 4%, and conch 4% as well.

Fisheries Profile, Hampton and Seaford, VA

For purposes of discussing fishery landings and preserving con fiden tiality, we have

combined weighout data for Hampton (within the Metropolitan Statistical Area depicted above)

and Seaford (within York Cou nty, census and employment data for which are offered below).

Gear-type data (Table VA-H1) show that sea-scalloping with dredges is the single-most

important fishery by value; otter-trawl dragging for finfish is highest for poundage. Some

draggers are also used for scalloping. Gill-netting, crab potting and dredging, seining, and

tonging for clams are other techniques used in these two ports (Seaford is almost entire ly

devoted to scalloping, but scalloping is also important in Hamp ton).

Like Newport News, Hampton and Seaford are important sea scalloping ports near

the mou th of Chesapeake Bay. Scallops accounted for 69% of landed value in 1998. In

Hampton, a significant portion of the scallops are caught with otter trawls rather than scallop

dredges. The sea scallop fleet of Seaford relies entire ly on dredges and accounts for virtua lly

all of the landings and landed value there. Besides scallops these dredge-equipped vess els

caught large amo unts of angler as well as a sm all amount of summer flounder.

Finfish dragging is also important in Hampton. Species diversity is extre me ly high.

The otter trawl fleet of Hampton takes Illex and Loligo squid, black sea bass (a substantial

amount is also caught with handlines); Atlan tic macke rel; Atlan tic croaker (a large portion was

caught by haul seines as well as pound nets and sink gill nets); and angler (although most was

landed by scallop dredges and scallop otter trawls). A sm all amount of pelag ic longlining is

also done from Hampton, for black tip, mako shortfin and thresher sharks and tuna (big eye,

yellowfin, albacore)

The inshore and bay fisheries of Hampton include the pound-net and seine fisheries

for Atlan tic croaker, gill-netting and handlining, blue crabs, (caught with dredges, pots, and

scrapes) and hard clams or quahogs (harvested with patent tongs and crabs). W e have

109

combined the weighout data for Hampton and Seaford to preserve the confidentiality of data

for fisheries with few businesses involved. Species diversity in the landings at Hampton and

Seaford is extre me ly high, 79 in 1998 (Table VA-H2). Fourteen had either poundage or value

at or above 2% in 1998, led by sea scallops, summer flounder, Illex squid, Atlan tic croaker,

blue crab, and angler.

Tab le VA-H1: Landings by Gear Type, Hampton and Seaford, VA, 1998

GEAR TYPE: HAMPTON &

SEAFORD

LBS (%)

Comm on Seine, Haul Seine 4.6

Dredge, Crab 1.6

Dredge, Scallop, Sea 16.6

Gill Net, Drift 0.7

Gill Net, Sink 8.2

Handline 0.3

Longline, Pela gic 0.1

Pots & Traps, Blue Crab 9.2

Pots & Traps, conch 0.0

Pots & Traps, Eel 0.0

Pots & Traps, fish 0.0

Scrapes 0.0

Tongs & Grabs, Clam, Patent 0.7

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Fish 53.5

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Scallop 4.4

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Shrim p 0.0

Pound Nets 0.0

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 9,089,500 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $13,311,000 dollars

VALUE (%)

0.7

0.8

57.2

0.2

2.1

0.2

0.1

3.9

0.0

0.0

0.0

0.0

3.4

16.5

14.7

0.0

0.0

110

Tab le VA-H2: Major Species Landed, Hampton and Seaford, VA, 1998

LBS (%)MAJOR SPECIES: HAMPTON &

SEAFORD

Angler

Crab, Blue

Croaker, Atlan tic

Flounder, Summer

Mac kere l, Atlan tic

Scallop, Sea

Sea Bass, Black

Squid, Illex

Squid, Loligo

Other Fish, Industrial

3.6

10.8

13.2

11.1

**

17.3

2.9

**

3.2

2.1

VALUE (%)

3.1

4.7

2.1

9.4

**

68.8

2.6

**

0.9

0.1

Striped Bass 4.8 1.1

Herring, NK ** **

Herring, Atlan tic ** **

Quahog 1.3 4.2

Number of Species: 79

Note: ** indicates confidential data due to sm all number of businesses involved.

Other species of MAFMC interest, by percentage value, 1998: Bluefish (0.4), Butterfish (0.1),

Scup (0.1), Spiny Dogfish (0.0), Tilefish (0.0).

Field Observations and Interviews, Hampton, VA, July 1999

Hampton is the site of three major fish wholesalers, in the context of recreational

fishing, resort homes, and other developmen t. According to one informant in our previous

study, five hundred new boat slips were built in the period 1988-1993. A salt pond was

dredged for marinas and the sand used for beach nourishmen t. Developers have built

condominiums as well as private homes and marinas. At one time, crab picking and oyster

shucking were important, but there is only one crab house left.

W e visited one dock/packing house. It has a long histo ry, 82 years in Hampton. On

one side of this packing house is a large recreational marina and restaura nt. On the other

side is "the only crab house left in this city." There are approxim ately 12 boats of less than 40

feet which pack at this dock. These boats gillnet for spot and other fish in the fall and change

gear for conch and crab during the spring and summ er.

The fish house does not have its own boats; at the time of the research visit, there

were only a few scallop boats docked here and three sm all trawlers (of the five or six working

out of these docks). The com pany's docks are wedged in between buildings forming part of a

busy tourist area. An informant from the company said there has been constant pressure

from developers for the use of the dock space. The business is entire ly wholesale, and owns

7 tractor trailers that haul fresh fish twice a week from North Carolina to Peoria, IL. The

company sends mostly croaker, gray trout, spots, bluefish and flounder. He said that winter

used to be the busiest time, but that now there is no one busy time because of the quotas.

W e were told that fluke is the sing le most important fishery there by another

employee of the business. At the time of the interview, the fluke fishers were working a

maximum of only 30 to 40 days a year, i.e., maybe 20% of what they wou ld norm ally work,

111

because of the restricted quota granted to the state. He believes that by not allowing bycatch,

the regulators are putting people out of business. They are limited to specific species that they

target and cannot build up a history with other species, making it imposs ible for them to get

additional permits. Further, seasonal restrictions do not always correspond with when the fish

are in nearby waters. The informant said there are more croaker and rockfish now than ever

before. He said the rockfish are decimating the crab indus try.

According to this inform ant, this packing house is pressured to go out of business

soon, even though it has been in the same location for 82 years and made extensive additions

and impro vements in the early 1980s. The last two years have been the worst in the

com pany's histo ry. It made $100,000 less than usual in the past 2 years, and management

has had to lay off 50-75 people in that time. They have closed the packing plant. He added

that this year the windy conditions actually were as damaging to the business as the

regulations. They currently employ 75 people, but submitted 200 W -2 tax forms in 1998

(giving some indication of the turnover). They use a lot of day workers. W orkers have a

number of other options in this area. There are a lot of government positions (e.g., in the

shipyards). Lucent Technologies, Gateway Computers, Canon, tourism, Langley, NASA and

other high tech companies have attracted the highly skilled labor. "We 've got the bottom of

the barrel for day worke rs," he said.

Some of the crab houses brought in Mexican workers every year, but an activist then

fought to enforce a law that required a guarantee of 35 hours per week for migrant labor. This

caused many to stop bringing in migrant labor. Half of the packers are women. They are

packing squ id at presen t. "The men do the heavier work," he said. Most of the women

packers are from Korea. The informant said that blacks, whites and Koreans work there, but

no Mexicans.

The issue of regulations is foremost here, as well. "W e always need regulations, but

it's too much, too quick, and not accura te." This informant said he wishes regulations cou ld be

relaxed once the stocks have rebounded. He also believes that states need separa te open

seasons for each species so that the market is not flooded all at once by different states

targeting the same species. (A second person interviewed added com men ts about the

unfairness of some fluke regulations, specifica lly the rule that if a catch is a certa in percentage

over the limit, the who le catch will be confiscated rather than just the average.)

He sees the goal of a maximum sus tainable yield as prob lematic because all species

cannot reach MSY at the same time. There is a lack of trout at the moment in large part

because of the abundance of croaker and rockfish. Species go through peaks and valleys at

different times in different areas. He wonders why they don't take compreh ensive landings

data so that there is a history of a species before it needs to be regulated. He worries about

measures like boat buy-backs because a drop in boats means a drop in fish house business.

As he pointed out, banks won't continue to loan money to a business in decline. (Although he

criticized boat buy-backs he also said it is unfa ir that the New England fishermen were the only

ones to have a boat buy back program). He also worries about imports. The lack of

regulations on international companies means lower prices for their products. He feels that

US companies can't compete.

Supply and demand, he said, will manage stocks better than any regulations will.

"Most watermen don't want to catch the last one," he observed. But he added that the

fishermen have "absolute ly no cohesiveness. Many watermen can't agree on ice cream ." He

said they only come to the meetings in a crisis -- they are extre me ly independent and resent

the regulations. At the same time, fishermen feel shut out at management meetings. He said

they resent the assumption that they are only acting out of their own interest and therefore

should not be taken serio usly. He feels that the government works for its own benefit. He said

that people in management act like the tail wagging the dog -- they work for the sake of the

institution, not for the fish or fishers.

112

The fish house has lost the business of four trawlers in recent years. One sank and

another ran aground. This brought up a discussion of the possibility that some boats sink not

because of acciden ts but as "a way to get out [of fishing] with dignity." He told of one fisher

who had his boat towed out to sea and sunk "with great cerem ony." He said it was a deeply

emotional experience for all involved since you norm ally fight with your life to save your boat.

The man who sank his boat died soon afterwards of a heart attack. The informant thinks it

was connected to the trauma of sinking the boat.

Very few young people are going into commercial fishing. The informant said the only

ones he knew of were the children of a fishing related business in Newport News and some of

the children in a local fishing "clan". He also said that nobody wants to buy a boat and that

there's also quite a bit of difficulty in transitioning to a larger boat. He pointed out that it is

illegal to transfer perm its to vess els that are more than 10% larger or have more than a 10%

greater horsepower.

One or two women work on crab boats. There are one or two women that longline

(from Florida and New England). The informant said the longliners come for 2 to 3 months in

the spring and fall, mostly following swordfish and tuna. There are two or three boats in

Hampton with Vietnamese owners, captains and crews.

Hampton is also the northern arm of an important Wanchese-based North Carolina

firm. Most of the fleet from North Carolina lands in Virgin ia when they are unable to get their

boats into Oregon Inlet.

At one time fishers used to congre gate at a local store, but now there is no particular

place where fishermen hang out for coffee or beer.

York County Profile (includes Seaford)

Population

The total population of York Cou nty, according to the 1990 Census, was 42,422 people. The

ratio of women to men was equal. Rural population was only 27% of the total population; only

52 people lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the population, 81.3% was white. The next largest racial group was black, at 15.6%.

There was a very sm all population of American Indians, less than 1%. Only 3.3% of the

population was foreign born, and 42.1% of the native born population was born in Virginia.

The most prevalent ancestries were English (10,454 people); German (9,671 people); and

Irish (6,021 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest, at 14,532 people, or 34.3%. Population

under 18 comprised 29.2% of the total population and 7.7% of the population was 65 years of

age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 14,474 households, in York Cou nty, 11,851, or 81.9% were fam ily households. Of the

fam ily households, 86.0% contained married couples and 10.8% were headed by sing le

women. An average of 2.9 people were in each household, but 15.1% of the households were

occupied by householders living alone.

Of the 14,474 households, 28.4% were renter occupied. There were 810 vacant housing units

in the county, 51 of which were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The homeowner

vacancy rate was 2.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.6%. The median value of owner-

113

occupied housing units was $121,600 in 1990 and the median rent was $442. One -unit

detached housing comprised 71.8% of all housing units and one-unit attached 9.2%.

Educational Trends

In York Cou nty, 88.3% of the population 25 years of age or older was a high school gradua te

or higher; 28.9% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $15,742 and median

household income was $40,363. Of the 41,798 people that for whom poverty status was

determined, 4.8% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 31,434 people in York Coun ty 16 years of age or older, 71.9% were in the labor force.

Of these, 87.6% were in the civilian labor force, of which 4.4% were unemployed. More recent

unemployment figures for the county were 2.7% in 1997 and 2.0% in 1998. This county

shows seasonal shift in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment was 2.8% in

January, ranged from 1.5% to 2.3% from April through October, and was then back up to 2.5%

in January of 1999. Ove rall, unemployment is low in York Cou nty.

Employment Industries

Of the 18,949 people employed over the age of 16 in 1990, 235 people, or 1.2%, were in the

agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector of all was professional

specialty occupations, at 20.6%, followed by retail at 15.8%. The next largest occupations

were executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; administrative support

occupations, including cleric al; pub lic administration; precision production, craft, and repa ir

occupations; and manufacturing, durable goods. Government workers comprised 27.9% of

the work force, and there were 980 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were no fishing vessel captains or officers in York

Cou nty. However, there were 22 men who engaged in fishing as an occupation. Of those 22

men, 19 were white and 3 were black.

Fisheries Profile, "Other York County"

York Coun ty is on the southwestern side of the York River, not far from Hampton and

from the mou th of the Chesapeake Bay, giving ready access to the ocean as well as the bay

and its tributary rivers. Seaford is the major fishing port; its landings are discussed above,

together with Hampton's. There are other waterman fisheries out of York Coun ty communities

as well. The following fisheries information pertains to them.

York Coun ty (in which Seaford is located) is the site of a waterman fishe ry, over 5

million pounds landed in 1998, valued at over $3 million. Crab pots accounted for 69% of that

value and oyster and clam tongs and grabs another 12%. Other fisheries include gill-nets for

striped bass, Atlan tic croaker and other species; seining (including striped bass and croaker);

dredging and scraping for clams and crabs, and some oystering and handlining. Very sm all

amo unts of bluefish, butterfish, summer flounder, scup, black sea bass, and smo oth and

‘other’ dogfish were landed and recorded in NMFS weighout data in 1998.

Field Observations and Interviews, Seaford, VA, July 1999

114

There are two active dealers in Seaford, operated by one fam ily, as well as a couple

of out-of-town dealers which purchase sm all quantities from vess els landing at Seaford. This

is ma inly a scalloping port. As of July 1999 there were 18 scallop boats at the docks of the

fam ily, all between 88-96 feet in length. The fam ily owns and runs 6 of the boats. Another

fam ily owns and runs 8 others. The remaining four are owner-operated. Each scallop boat

carries a crew of 7. The company owners also have three boats in Alaska crewed by men

from the Seaford area. They have had boats in Alaska since 1993.

W e talked with a principal of the Seaford business, who explained that about twenty

years ago his fam ily moved to Seaford from the Gulf of Mexico, where they had been involved

in shrimping. Pressure from imports and regulations led them to leave shrimping and enter

scalloping. They chose the Seaford area because it was where scallop boats were being built

at the time.

The company employs 25+ people. Three people do the accounting, two of whom

handle boats only. Therefore staffing overhead is relatively low. This year about 25% of

company income is coming from the three boats in Alaska, and from only three months of

work. This percentage is actually down from previous years because production on the local

scallop boats has improved.

The person interviewed said there is one Hisp anic captain. The number of minorities

hired as crew depends on the captain. One company boat is run by a Texas cap tain whose

entire 5 or 6 man crew is Mexican or Mexican-American. On six of the boats at least 50% of

the crew are from Mexico, Central America or Puerto Rico. One of the company boats in

Alaska has three of four brothers from El Salvador. Occ asionally there were fem ale

crewme mbers in the past, but there are none now. Our informant at the company said at least

half of those who work out of these docks live in Seaford or other parts of York Cou nty.

Crewing is a major problem here as well, exacerbated by the scallop management

plan’s restrictions on days at sea. "We 've just been through four horr ible years regarding

crew," said the inform ant. Local captains have not been able to depend on consistency or

quality of crews. "It all depends on the cap tain and how the boat is man aged," he said. He

added that "What we have here is a glorified part- time job." Scallop fishermen are only

allowed on the water for 120 days a year; the informant said that's not enough incentive to

keep good crew for the year. Crew size has been cut from a high of 11 to 13 down to 7 (the

minimum crew needed for optimal operation with current gear). The informant thinks that the

boats are no longer in balance. By this he means that the crews are no longer sufficient to

truly do a good job. W ith a high turnover rate, the good crew cannot develop good relations

over time. He believes this is typical of the who le indus try. The com pany's best men go to

Alaska to fish. Thirty or more men are gone at present (including several from Cape May,

several from Alaska and the rest from Virgin ia and North Carolina). One of the company

boats took off the who le mon th of May; during which time the who le crew turned over. The

informant feels that the fleet has not learned very well how to live with the 120-day limit. He

also thinks that most scallopers do not manage their hours or money well.

The "ice boats," or local scallop boats, go out for 12-14 days at a time. Since crews

only have 120 days at sea, everyone on a boat tends to be on the same schedule. The

informant said many of the independent boats go out early as often as they can early in the

season. He said he encourages them to slow down because prices rise as the season wears

on.

There used to be 65 to 75 scallop boats in the Seaford area. Cur rently they scallop

anywhere from east or southeast of the Virgin ia Capes to the Hague line. This past summ er,

he was starting to see scallops that were too large to market eas ily. February to August is

their busiest season.

115

Land use is not a major problem here. The area has been zoned com mercial, and the

informant said most of the current residen ts knew that when they came 20 years ago. The

business has now been around longer than most of the residents. There used to be a crab

plant next door, but it closed. There is an industrial welder down the street that services the

com pany's boats and facto ry. The fam ily had more problems with "concerned neighbors" in

the first five years of being at their present location than they have had in the last fifteen years.

"At times we were scapegoated. Some complained about the trucks, the traffic." He said that

every year management talks to the truck drivers about respecting the residential nature of the

surrounding com munity. Since starting that, "we don't get many phone calls." They "adopted"

the road that the business is on and clean it every six weeks.

They just rece ntly started retailing to the local com munity. It has not been prof itable to

open an actual retail market, so they sell in sm all quantities to those who know they're there.

They donate 50 tons of ice a year for local functions. They make no financial contributions

and do not pretend to com pete with the donations from the Coc a-Cola factory nearby. Each of

the 4 manage rs may donate one 40-lb. bag of scallops to whomever they wish each year.

The informant has been involved in fisheries management for years but has cut back

because he was doing too much traveling. And he felt that there were too many meetings that

weren't productive. He said the most active and effective association in the area is the

Chesapeake Bay W aterm an's Association. He knows of no associations for offshore fishers

that are effective, and thinks that there may not even be any active ones.

Northampton County Profile (includes Cape Charles and Oyster)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Northampton Coun ty had a total population of 13,061.

Women outnumbered men by 7.2%. The entire population was rura l, though only 4.5% live on

farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the population, 52.7% are white and 46.2% are black. There were sm all numbers of

American Indians and Asian residents. The Hisp anic population was also very sm all at 2.0%.

Only 234 people in the county were foreign born, and 79.3% of the native-born population was

born in Virginia. The most prevalent ancestors reported were English (2,288 people); United

States or American (1,733 people); and Irish (1,064 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest, at 3,455 people or 26.5%. Population under

18 years of age was 25.4% and 19.8% of the population was 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 5,129 households in Northampton Cou nty, 68.6% were fam ily households. Of the

fam ily households, 48.4% contained married couples and 16.1% were headed by sing le

women. An average of 2.5 people were in each household, but 27.8% of the households were

occupied by householders living alone.

Of the 5,129 households, 34.3% were renter occupied. There were 1,054 vacant housing

units in the county, 344 or which were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The

homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1 % and the rental vacancy rate was 7.5%. The median

value of the owner-occupied housing units was $47,700 in 1990 and median rent was $151.

One -unit detached housing comprised 77.7% of all housing units and mobile homes and

trailers 15.0%.

Educational Trends

116

In Northampton Cou nty, 57.3% of the population age 25 or older was a high school gradua te

or higher; 12.4% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $10,176 and median

household income was $18,117. Of the 12,821 people for whom poverty status was

determined in 1989, 3,405, or 26.6% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 10,095 people 16 years of age or older in Northampton Coun ty in 1990, 55.2% were in

the labor force. Of these, 99.4% were in the civilian labor force, of which 6.9% were

unemployed. More recent unemployment figures for the county were 6.6% in 1997 and 5.4%

in 1998. The county shows seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998,

unemployment was 7.6% in January, ranged from 4.0% to 5.2% in April through October, and

was then back up to 6.0 in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 5,160 employed people 16 years of age or older, 660, or 12.8% were in the agriculture,

forestry, and fisheries industries sectors. The largest sector of all was retail, at 16.0%,

followed by service occupations, except protective and household, at 12.6%. The next largest

occupations were professional specialty occupations; farming, forestry, and fishing

occupations; precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations; sales occupation; and health

services. Government workers comprised 17.3% of the work force, and there were 784 self-

employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 9 fishing vessel captains or officers in Northampton

Cou nty, all of which were white males. There were 127 men engaged in fishing as an

occupation; 99 were white males and 28 were black males.

Fisheries Profile, Northampton County, VA

Northampton Coun ty is at the southernmost tip of the Delmarva peninsula. Among its

fishing ports are Oyster, inside the barrier islands of the Atlan tic coast, and Cape Charles, at

the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay, but most of the landings come from smaller sites coded

as "Other Northampton" in NMFS weighout data. The fisheries are inshore and estuarine,

dominated by blue crabs, Atlan tic croaker, hard clams, and horseshoe crabs (Table VA-N2).

Weakfish/squeteague and striped bass are among the 45 other species landed com mercially

in this area of Virginia.

Reflecting the importance of blue-crabs, the most important sing le gear-type is the

blue crab pot (Table VA-N1). Pots are also used for conch, eel, and fish (the 1998 catches of

the fish pots were Atlan tic croaker and northern puffer, the latter a most unusual specialty).

Dredges are used for hard clams, conch, horseshoe crabs, and blue crabs. Scrapes are used

for crabs and eels; clams are harvested with patent tongs and "by hand."

Pound -nets are also important, both for crab and for fish. The fish pound nets catch

Atlan tic croakers, striped bass, summer flounder, weakfish and others, totaling 32 species.

Otter trawl and "unknown" constitute the next largest gear types, totaling 8% of value; both

were almost entire ly horseshoe crab harves ts in 1998. Gill-nets are used for a large variety of

species; drift gill nets for 30 species, including striped bass, Atlan tic croaker, and spot; sink gill

nets for 25 species, including American shad and weakfish. The NMFS dealer weighout data

used for landings do not com plete ly reflect the active, inshore fishery of Virginia, which is

recorded by the State of Virginia. On the other hand, they do indicate the variety of techniques

and fisheries.

117

Tab le VA-N1: Landings by Gear Type, Northampton Cou nty, VA, 1998

LBS (%) VALUE (%)GEAR TYPE:

NORTHAMPTON CO., VA

By Hand 0.3

By Hand, Oyster 0.0

Comm on, Haul Seine 0.0

Dredge, Clam 0.3

Dredge, Conch 0.1

Dredge, Crab 6.4

Dredge, Other 0.3

Gill Net, Drift 6.1

Gill Net, Sink 4.7

Gill Net, Stake 0.1

Handline 0.2

Pots & Traps, Blue Crab 28.7

Pots & Traps, Conch 0.4

Pots & Traps, Eel 0.0

Pots & Traps, Fish 0.1

Pound Net, Crabs 0.2

Pound Net, Fish 24.0

Scrapes 0.0

Tongs & Grabs, Clam, Patent 0.0

Otter Tra wl, Bottom, Fish 16.7

2.3

0.0

0.0

3.4

0.3

7.9

0.1

4.9

4.4

0.1

0.4

33.6

1.6

0.0

0.2

0.6

14.7

0.1

0.3

13.9

11.1“Unknown” (Horseshoe Crab) 11.4

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 8,468,400 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $5,001,400 dollars

Note: "0.0" indicates some activity but less than 0.06%

Tab le VA-N2: Landings by Major Species, Northampton Cou nty, VA, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES:

NORTHAMPTON CO., VA

LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

Bass, Striped 1.3 3.1

Crab, Blue 34.9 41.2

Crab, Horseshoe 28.2 25.2

Croaker, Atlan tic 21.4 13.1

Quahog 0.5 2.9

Spot 2.4 1.4

Conch 0.8 2.9

Clams, Bloodarc 0.2 2.9

Weakfish 5.1 2.5

Number of Species: 49

Other species of MAFMC interest, by percentage value 1998: Bluefish (0.6), Butterfish (0.1).

The three ma in commercial ports in Northampton Coun ty are Cape Charles,

Oyster, and W illis W harf. Descriptions of these ports, courtesy of Jim Jenretto of Cape

Charles (personal communication Feb. 6, 2000), are supplemented by field observations of

Oyster.

118

Cape Charles, VA

The town of Cape Charles is the nearest port to the mou th of the Chesapeake Bay

and Atlan tic Ocean along the bayside of the Eastern Shore. It is also the only port deep

enough for larger fishing vess els such as offshore trawlers and surf clammers. At one time

there was a large surf clamming/ocean quahogging fleet operating out of Cape Charles as

well as two clam processing plants across the shore in the town of Oyster. One of the

processors still owns its docks in downtown Cape Charles. All of the surf clam boats now

operate from Ocean City, MD, Atlan tic City, NJ, and points farther north along the Eastern

Seaboard because of higher yields of usable product from clams in more north erly waters.

Pres ently crabbers, gill-netters, eelers, and fish potters are the primary users of Cape Charles

harbor as well as King's Creek Marina on the north side of town. The marina is due to

undergo total renovation in the winter of 2000-2001, and the commercial fishermen are

concerned that they will not be able to afford to rem ain there. The renovation is also being

protested by one of the largest cultured clam operations on the East Coas t, which is located

nearby, at the entrance to King's Creek.

Oyster is located approxim ately 6 miles to the west of Cape Charles on the ocean

side of the Eastern Shore. Pres ently it is home to two seafood buyers but no longer has any

operating surf clam processors or their boats. The surf clam industry dominated until a few

years ago. Difficulties obtaining perm its for processing due to water quality concerns as well

as higher clam yields in more north erly waters contributed to the firms' decisions to move

boats and processing to other ports, including New Bedford, MA, Atlan tic City, NJ, and

Mappsville, VA. One of the clam processing plants has been torn down.

During the season, there are 4 or 5 boats in the 35 to 45 foot range that operate

offshore in conch (whelk) and spiny dogfish fisheries. However, most commercial fishermen

operating from this port work in clamming by hand, dredge, or patent tong, crabbing by potting

or dredge, or fishing by handline or gill net. There are also several people involved in the

cultured clam indus try.

Field Observations and Interviews, Oyster, VA, July 1999

There is a significant amount of clam farming going on in Oyster and the surrounding

area. An informant at a local wholesaler in Oyster said there are 40 million clams farmed in

"South Bay, the Point, and Plantation Creek ." His company employs 8 men, all former

watermen. Very few young people are getting in to commercial fishing, we were told. This is

mostly a farming area, but being transformed by exurbanites. Many of the houses in the are

just outside Oyster are owned by "retirement seekers from New Jersey." The Nature

Conservancy has been buying up land in the area as well.

Most of the clam harvesting is done by indepen dents using their feet, or treading.

He said there are 10 to 12 boats measuring 16 to 23 feet that usually dock here as well as 30

to 40 foot boats. Oyster used to be the site of a surf clam processing plant but it moved to

Massachusetts. Another packing house is across the creek. They buy what little fish is

caught in this area -- croaker, spot and especia lly drum, which is caught in the spring. This

used to be a big oyster area. He said it's too cold to fish there in the winter. All of the boats

are run by local fishermen. There is one woman who fishes in Oyster.

Willis Wharf, VA

W illis W harf is another seaside com mun ity with strong commercial fishing ties. It also

was once the site of a surf clam processing plant and a sm all fleet of surf clam boats. Now

there are two hatcheries for cultured clams as well as at least one seafood buyer. As with

Oyster, the commercial fleet consis ts prim arily of boats from 16 to 30 feet long whose purpose

119

is to participate in the clam, crab, or gill net fisheries. Both of the seaside communities of

Oyster and W illis W harf have been hurt also by the severe decline of the hand harvest oyster

indus try.

Accomack County Profile (includes Chincoteague and Wachapreague)

Accomack Coun ty shares the southern end of the Delmarva pen insu la with

Northampton Cou nty. Wachapreague and Chincoteague are sites of inlets through the barrier

island system on the Atlan tic ocean side.

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Accomack Coun ty had a total population of 31,703. Women

outnumbered men by about 5.5%. Rural population was 88.7%, though only 1,079 people

lived on farms (3.4%).

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Of the population 64.5% was white, followed by black at 34.5%. There were sm all numbers of

American Indian and Asian residents. The Hisp anic population was also very sm all, at 1.4%.

Only 405 people in the county were foreign born, and 70.3% of the native born population was

born in Virginia. The most prevalent ancestries are English (6,028 people); United States or

American (4,841 people); and German (3,032 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest, at 8,828 people, or 27.8%. Population under

18 years old was 23.7% and 18.5% was 65 or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 12,653 households in Accomack Cou nty, 69.4% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 75.8% comtained married couples and 18.9% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.46 people were in each household, but 27.4% of the total householders lived

alone.

Educational Trends

In Accomack Cou nty, 59.9% of the population 25 years or older was a high school gradua te or

higher; 9.2% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 Census, per capita income for the county was $10,506 and median

household income was $20,431. Of the 31,103 people for whom poverty status was

determined in 1989, 6,107, or 19.6% were below the poverty line.

Employment

Of the 24,985 people 16 years of age and older in Accomack Cou nty, 59.8% were in the labor

force. Of these, 98.3% were in the civilian labor force, of which 6.8% were unemployed. More

recent unemployment figures for the county were 9.4% in 1997 and 6.6% in 1998. The county

shows seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment was 10.2% in

January, ranged from 4.9% to 6.9% from April through October, and then was back up to 9.6%

in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 13,690 employed people 16 years of age or older, 9.1% were in the agriculture,

forestry, and fisheries industries sector. The largest sector of all was retail, at 18.7%, followed

by manufacturing, nondurable goods, at 15.3%. The next largest occupations were service

occupations, except protective and household; precision production, craft, and repa ir

occupations; Administrative support occupations, including cleric al; sales occupations; and

120

handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers. Government workers comprised 16.3%

of the work force, and there were 1,509 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 25 fishing vessel captains or officers in Accomack

Cou nty, all of them white men. There were 360 men and 12 women engaged in fishing as an

occupation. Of the men, 334 were white and 26 were black. Of the women, all 12 were white.

Fisheries Profile, Accomack County and Chincoteague, VA

The visiting otter trawl fishery accou nts for almost half of Chinc oteague's 1998 landed

value; summer flounder predominates in this fishery and is the leading species for landed

value (39%). Like other Mid-Atlan tic otter trawl fleets, this one is highly diverse, landing 19

species in 1998, led by summer flounder, black sea bass, and Loligo squid. There is a sm all

drift gill-net fishery for striped bass, Atlan tic croaker and other species and a large sink gill-net

fishery (27% of Chinc oteague's value), ma inly for angler, but also spiny dogfish, Atlan tic

macke rel, and other species. Angler was almost as valuable as fluke in 1998. Some

handlining and longlining for tunas and sharks takes place, and in1998 16% of the value came

from fish pots, ma inly black sea bass. Less than 5% of Chinc oteague's fishing activit y, in

terms of value, came from clamming, crabbing and other estuarine and bay fisheries, which

otherwise predom inate in the Virgin ia and Maryland region.

Tab le VA-AC1 shows 1998 landings and value, broken down by percentage for gear

type and major species, combining Chinc oteague's landings with those of the many sm all

waterman fisheries of Accomack Cou nty, as well as the port of Wachapreague. Seventy-two

species were landed in 1998, prim arily blue crabs. Crabs are caught with dredges, pots,

scrapes, and trot-lines. There is also oystering and hard-clamming. Angler and summer

flounder, ma inly from Chinc oteague's gill-net and otter trawl fisheries, account for 2.2% and

3.8% of the coun ty's total value. Striped bass, Atlan tic croaker, and conch are other

important species.

The major gear types are crab pots (52.2% of value) and conch and fish pots (4.9%);

crab scrapes and dredges. Also important are gillnets (19.8% of value); otter trawls; and "by

hand" referring to treading, hand rakes, and other techniques used to harvest hard clams,

oysters and horseshoe crabs.

121

Tab le VA-CH1: Landings by Gear Type, Accomack Cou nty, VA, 1998

LBS. %GEAR TYPE: CHINCOTEAGUE & OTHER ACCOMACK CO, VA VALUE %

By Hand 0.5 2.4

By Hand, Oyster 0.0 0.0

Dredge, clam 0.1 0.5

Gill Net, Drift 15.0 7.9

Gill Net, Sink 19.5 11.8

Gill Net, Stake 0.1 0.1

Handline 0.0 0.1

Longline Pela gic 0.0 0.0

Pots & Traps, Blue Crab 45.9 52.2

Pots & Traps, Conch 1.5 3.1

Pots & Traps, Fish 1.2 1.8

Rakes, Other 0.0 0.1

Tra wl, Otter, Bottom, Fish 3.3 4.4

Cast Nets 0.1 0.1

Seines 0.7 0.3

Dredge, Conch 1.9 1.5

Dredge, Crab 4.4 4.3

Dredge, Oyster 0.1 0.3

Pots & Traps, Eel 0.0 0.0

Pound Net, Crab 0.1 0.3

Pound Net, Fish 3.2 0.8

Scrapes 2.1 7.3

Tongs & Grabs, Patent 0.1 0.7

Trot Line 0.1 0.1

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 11,077,100 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $8,485,000 dollars

Tab le VA-AC2: Landings by Major Species, Accomack Cou nty, VA, 1998

Spot 8.2 4.1

MAJOR SPECIES: ACCOMACK CO, VA

Crab, Blue

Flounder, Summer

Angler

Bass, Striped

Croaker, Atlan tic

Dogfish, Spiny

Quahog

Horseshoe Crab

Conch

Menhaden

LBS. (%) VALUE(%)

52.2 63.9

2.4 3.8

** **

1.5 2.7

** **

** **

0.6 3.4

2.5 1.5

1.6 3.3

2.8 0.3

Number of Species: 72

Note: ** indicates confidential data due to the sm all number of businesses involved.

Other Species of MAFMC interest, by percentage value, 1998: Bluefish (0.5), Butterfish (0.1),

Atlan tic Mackerel (0.1), Scup (0.0), Black Sea Bass (1.7), Tilefish (**), Loligo Squ id (**).

122

Field Observations and Interviews: Chincoteague, VA

Chincoteague is a sm all Atlan tic ocean port on the Delmarva peninsula, within

Accomack Cou nty. There is little of a resident ocean fleet left, the sea clam vess els having

been sold when ITQs came into being in 1990. There is only one resident active dealer, but

four out-of-town dealers uses this dock as a packing house. Seasonally, draggers and other

fishermen come from other states to land their catches in Chincoteague, and there is a sm all

local inshore and bay fishery as well as shellfish farming.

There are several packing houses in Chincoteague, including a sm all cooperative. An

informant at one of the houses said that as of 1997, they handled thousands of fluke, but

regulations on the summer flounder fishery put an end to that business. They now handle

shellfish and farm raise oysters. They also who lesa le some fluke, conch, and scallops that

come in as bycatch. He was born and raised in Chincoteague and has worked at this

company for 30 years. His who le fam ily worked as watermen as far back as he knows. He

said that sea bass, spot, croaker, crabs, and "swelling toad" (blowfish) have been caught in

this area.

Because it is difficult to stay in business working only 4 to 5 months out of the year,

they've added a restaurant and seafood bar. They supply most of their own restau rant's

needs as well as other restaurants. They supply all of their own clams, oysters, crabs and

fish, and purchase scallops, trout, spot, and crab from local fishers. (Much of the crab is

imported, because the crab industry is declining as well). He believes that oysters will be

coming back soon, after their considerable decline. This business employs 75 to 100 people,

including 40 shuckers; this is a decline from 130 to 150 people. Some of the shellfish

shuckers are black women, from off the island. There are no women fishers here.

There are 15 to 20 gill-net boats, all ranging from 20 to 30 feet in length, in

Chincoteague, as well as visiting draggers from North Carolina. In the fluke season, North

Carolina draggers come here to land their fish. Two years ago (1997) there were five

draggers from New Bedford. However, because they were not here in 1992, the cut-off data

used to determine Virginia 's quota, they cou ld not return.

Twen ty or more years ago there were 14 oyster shucking houses in the area. There

were also "old fishing steamers" docking here with surf clams and ocean quahogs, when the

offshore clams were abundant offshore. Now there are hote ls built on old oyster lands.

People who did well oystering or surf clamming have also gone into the motel business, and

one raises clams as well.

Our informant said that it is hard to get young people to work on the water, given the

state's licensing system. The "Working W aterm an's Card" is easy to get but it takes two years

and costs $150 a year to ma intain it. It also does not guarantee a species license.

Some fishermen hang out at his bar, the Chincoteaque Inn and the American Legion.

They go to Bill's Seafood or the Island Fam ily restaurant for break fast.

Field Observations and Interviews, Wachapreague, VA, July 1999

The one packing house in Wachapreague is owned by a married couple who had a

business in another town before coming here 4 to 5 years ago. They have 6 or 7 boats now

that go out 20 to 30 miles for croaker, spot, shark (dogfish), conch, and hard and soft crabs.

There once was a clam house here as well. The 1998 NMFS landings for Wachapreague

were sm all, ma inly gill-netting for horseshoe crabs and pot-fishing for conch and blue crabs.

123

Captains and crew on the boats are mostly loca l. In July, 1999 they were fishing for

shark (dogfish). Boats come in from North Carolina to Massachusetts. Cur rently this

business wholesales exc lusive ly and sends it product to other wholesalers by common carrier.

Plans call for a retail market in the future.

The boats shift from longlining to gillnetting to conch or crab potting. There are

usually three crew per boat, all in their 30s and 40s. There are no fem ale fishers

in the area.

Other Observations on Wachapreague

In November 1999 Dr. Peter Fricke, of the Sus tainable Fisheries Division of the

National Marine Fisheries Service, researched the status of Wachapreague as a "fishing

com munity" under the definition of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. His brief study, done by

consulting U.S. Census and state and federal fisheries data and making phone calls to port

agents and other knowledgeable persons, shows what can and should be done for individual

ports when and if they are identified as critical for particular FMPs. W ith his permission, we

reproduce his report on Wachapreague which was prepared in response to review of the spiny

dogfish FMP of the New England and Mid-Atlan tic Fishery Management Councils.9 The level

of deta il provided here was not possible for our study but should be provided in specific FMPs.

"Wachapreague, VA is a sm all rura l, non-farming com mun ity on the Atlan tic Ocean

side of the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. It lies in Accomack Coun ty and is

approxim ately 60 miles North of Norfolk, VA and the same distance South of Salisbury, MD.

Wachapreague provides a sheltered harbor behind a series of barrier islands lying offshore to

the East, and is close to U.S 13, a major highway connecting Nor folk and the Carolinas with

eastern Maryland, Delaware and Philadelphia. At the time of the 1990 Census, Accomack

Coun ty had a population of 31,703 and Wachapreague had 313 residents. The town is

incorporated, and has three marinas that provide local moorage. Two of these marinas are

priva tely owned, and in addition to moorings each provides a launching ramp, a bait and tack le

shop, and a restaura nt. The town owns and operates the third marina, which also has a

launching ramp. A fish packing house is located next to the seawall, which provides dockage

for four vess els owned by the packinghouse. Other businesses in the com mun ity include a

grocery and a hote l. Resp onden ts report that employment and commercial activity in the

com mun ity peak in the summer months. Most businesses are reported to rely on the

participan ts in recreational fisheries for their principal earnings, and the commercial fisheries

for a year-round trading base.

Wachapreague, VA at a Glance:

Item Number Employment or value

Population* 313 persons

Households* 159 households Pop. Aged >64* 41%

Workforce* 106 persons

Live and work in 32 persons

com munity*

9 Peter Fricke. 1999. Communities in the Spiny Dogfish Fishery. Silver Spring, MD: National Marine Fisheries

Service, Sustainable Fisheries Division. Draft November 12, 1999

124

Hou sehold income*

Transfer income

Earned income

Fishery businesses

Marinas

Bait & tack le

Boat ramps

Restaurants

Hotel

Fish dealers

Packinghouse

Grocery Comm ercial boats (all)

Homeported

Transients:

Other VA.

Out-of -State

Charter boats (all)

Homeported

Trans ients

Recreational boats

Year-round

Comm ercial fish landings

40 percent

60 percent

3

2

3

3

1

2

1

1

25 approx.

5

14

6 approx.

15 approx.

7

8 approx.

40-50 approx.

5 persons FTE**

4 persons FTE

1 person FTE

12 persons FTE

8 persons FTE

3 persons FTE

8 persons FTE

3 persons FTE

(75 persons

seasonally)

15 persons FTE

(35 persons

seasonally)

9 persons FTE

$110,104 (100%)

$44,480 (41%)

(all) 362,167 pounds

Dogfish (100%)

236,000 pounds

(65%)

* 1989 Bureau of Census data. All other information is for 1997.

** FTE ~ full time equivalent employees; estima te of year round employment

"Once known as the “flounder capital of the world,” Wachapreague continues to be

active ly involved in recreational fisheries. The marinas provide some 100 slips between them,

with between 40 and 50 private recreational fishing boats moored for the full season. Other

transient boats use the marina slips, but the greatest use of the facilities is reported to be by

trailerable boats launched from the ramps by fishermen travelling from the Nor folk area,

Maryland and Delaware. It was reported that, during the summer flounder season (mid-Ap ril

to mid-Septem ber), parking spaces in the com mun ity are non-existent at weekends and on

holida ys because of street parking by boat trailers and towing vehicles. Seven charter boats

were reported to be based in Wachapreague year-round, and another eight to ten charter

boats, from as far away as Florida, operated from Wachapreague during the flounder season.

The charter and party boats homeported in Wachapreague hold Federal perm its for Atlan tic

tuna angling (5), Atlan tic tuna general (1), black sea bass (1), NE Multispecies groundfish (1),

scup (1), squid-mackerel-butterfish (1), and summer flounder (1).

"Principal inshore recreational fisheries are for summer flounder (fluke), croaker

(hardhead) and spot. Striped bass (rockfish), red drum, black drum and sea trout (weakfish)

are also reported to be taken inshore. The offshore recreational fishery (mid-June to mid-

Septemb er) is for bluef in tuna, yellowfin tuna, dolph in (dorado; mahi-m ahi), wahoo, white

marlin, blue ma rlin and sharks. The marinas and local sportfishing organizations sponsored

nine recreational fishing tournam ents in 1997.

125

Wachapreague Recreational Fishing Tournaments, 1997

Month

April

April

June

June

July

August

August

August

September

Tournament

Wachapreague Marina Spring

Flounder Tournament

Capt. Zed ’s Wachapreague

Spring Flounder Tournament

MSSA Tuna-ment

Annual Greater Atlan tic Bluefish

Tournament

Eastern Shore Mar lin Club

Tournament

“Chick-charter” Ladies Tuna

Tournament

Wachapreague Fall Flounder

Tournament

Fish for Hope Charity

Tournament

Eastern Shore Mar lin Club Fall

Tournament

"The commercial fisheries prosecuted by local and transient vess els are spiny and

smo oth dogfish, flounder, striped bass (rockfish), weakfish (sea trout), scup, black sea bass,

macke rel, butterfish, blue crab, shad, quahogs and clams, conch and whelks. Most vess els

using the port facilities are reported to be less than fifty feet in length, and operated by a

skipper and a crew of two or three fishermen. In 1997, the Virgin ia Marine Resources

Comm ission (VMRC) reported that 19 commercial fishermen (watermen) licensed by the

VMRC made landings of inshore fish species in Wachapreague. Four vess els are owned by

the local packinghouse, and are homeported in Wachapreague. Seasonally, the “conch fleet”

of vessels, many homeported at Tangier Island in Chesapeake Bay, lands their catches in

Wachapreague. Resp onden ts estima te that of 40 vess els in the conch fleet, some 15 land

their catches in the com mun ity at one time or another during the season. In the dogfish

fisheries, the local gillnet vess els are often joined by 3 or 4 transient vess els from North

Carolina and between 5 and 10 vess els from the conch fleet. These transient vess els follow

the fishery along the coast from the Hampton Roads to Ocean City, using the ports closest to

their fishing grounds.

’In 1997, spiny dogfish comprised 65.2 percent of commercial landings by weight and

40.7 percent by value, of all reported landings at Wachapreague. Other landings are made,

such as conch, which are trucked by fishermen to other ports and sold there to dealers.

These landings will appear in the port-of-sale’s landing data and will not be attributed to

Wachapreague. Moreover, landings from fishing operations within the three -mile territorial

sea or for fish, such as conch, for which Federal perm its are not required, do not always

appear in the NMFS weighout data. This information is reported to the Com mon wealth of

Virgin ia’s VMRC as a condition of state permits.

"Two dealers holding Federal perm its operate in Wachapreague. One dealer

operates the packinghouse, the second offloads from vess els into trucks for direct delivery to

retail establishmen ts or processors in other communities. The packinghouse in

Wachapreague holds a range of Federal perm its for local fisheries that require them, and

most reports of landings are provided by this facility to NMFS. In addition to packing the

landings of the vess els fishing in the territorial sea and exclusive econom ic zone, the

Wachapreague packing house also is reported to pack finfish and crab landings from

Chesapeake Bay fisheries which are trucked to the facility across the peninsula. The

packinghouse is fam ily operated and employs 8 to 10 staff on a seasonal basis. The packed

126

produc ts are shipped to seafood processors by tractor-trailer. It is reported that a dedicated

tractor-trailer hau ls dogfish, during the season, to processing plants in Massachusetts.

"Wachapreague is an established com munity, and recognizes its roots in fisheries

and agriculture with an annual com mun ity fair and exhibits of old photographs and

memorabilia. A preponderance of the Coun ty and W achapreague’s residen ts (79 percen t)

lived in Accomack Coun ty in 1985. However, 70 percent of W achapreague’s residen ts lived in

the same house in 1985 as they did in 1990, in contrast to 60 percent of Accomack Coun ty

residents. The depth of the roots of the com mun ity can be seen in the 1990 Census data.

"Wachapreague has an elder ly population compared to Accomack county; 41.5

percent of W achapreague’s residen ts were over the age of 65 years and only 16.2 percent of

the residen ts under 25 years of age in 1990. In Accomack Coun ty residen ts over 65 years of

age formed 18.5 percent of the population, while those under 25 years of age comprised 31.7

percent at the time of the 1990 Census. The residen ts of Wachapreague are white; in 1990

no mem bers of mino rity groups lived in the com munity. In contras t, the white residen ts of

Accomack Coun ty formed 65 percent of the county’s population in 1990.

"The gender balance of the populations of Wachapreague and Accomack Coun ty

was similar; 47.5 percent ma le and 52.5 percent female. However, household composition

differed marked ly between Wachapreague and Accomack Coun ty in 1990, due to the

distinctive population age structures. In Wachapreague most residen ts lived in two-person

households (46.5 percent of 159 households) and 34.6 percent of the households had one

residen t. In Accomack Cou nty, 38.7 percent of the 12,646 households had three or more

persons living together, 34.1 percent of the residen ts lived in two-person households while

27.2 percent lived alone.

"Of the 313 persons resident in Wachapreague in 1990, 106 were employed in the

work force. Of those employed, 32 persons (30.2 percen t) worked in the com munity. In fact

77.4 percent of W achapreague’s work force were working in Accomack Coun ty or

Wachapreague itself, while 17 percent worked in Northampton Coun ty or the

Norfolk/Hampton Roads area to the South. Six persons (5.6 percent of the work force) were

employed out of state, in Maryland. In Accomack Coun ty as a whole, in contras t, only 13

percent of the work force (13,643 persons) worked in their communities of residence, while

84.5 percent worked within the Cou nty. Some 882 persons (6.4 percent of the workforce)

commuted south to Northampton Coun ty or Norfolk/Hampton Roads, and 1,229 persons (9

percen t) worked out of state in Maryland. The employment patterns of comm uters in part

reflects W achapreague’s location in the southern third of Accomack county and the availability

of unskilled and semi-skilled work in the poultry farms and packing houses of the Delmarva

Peninsula.

"The educational attainm ents of the residen ts of Wachapreague and Accomack

Coun ty as a who le differed. Of the residen ts over 25 years of age in Wachapreague (n=262),

one-third had not completed high school graduation requirem ents compared to two-fifths of

Coun ty residen ts over 25 years of age (n=21,643). In Wachapreague, 14.1 percent had

acquired a tertiary education qualification compared to 13.4 percent of residen ts of Accomack

Coun ty over 25 years of age.

"W hile three of W achapreague’s 313 residen ts lived on farms, no one declared

income from farming in 1990. The 1990 census shows that 8 persons were employed in

farming, forestry or fishing industries and 5 in farming, forestry or fishing occupations.

Employment in transportation was 12 persons. The census also indicates that 58.5 percent of

the Wachapreague work force was in the priva te-fo r-pro fit sector and 21.6 percent was self-

employed. Information provided by respon dents com ports with this census data. Since the

majo rity of fishermen are paid on a “share” basis, they are deemed, for tax purposes, to be

self-employed. Employment on the four local commercial vess els wou ld be between 12 and

127

16 persons, and the local charter fleet of seven vess els wou ld provide seasonal employment

for between 14 and 18 persons. Year-round employment at the private marinas was

estimated to be 8 persons, with seasonal employment up to 15 persons. The packinghouse

was estimated to employ 8 to 10 persons year round, with additional staff hired as necessary.

Obv ious ly, Coun ty residen ts wou ld fill some of these jobs, since only 32 Wachapreague

residen ts were reported to work in the com munity.

"The median income of Wachapreague households in 1989 was $19, 917, while that

of Accomack Coun ty households was $20,431. The older population in Wachapreague

introduced significant differences in the income patterns between com mun ity households and

Coun ty households. Of the 159 households in Wachapreague 59.1 percent (94 households)

reported earned income in 1989, compared to 74.3 percent of Accomack Coun ty households.

In Wachapreague, 36.4 percent of the households received retirement income and 56 percent

of households received Social Secur ity payments. In contras t, only 18 percent of Accomack

Coun ty households received retirement income while 37.3 percent of Coun ty households

received Social Secur ity payments.

"To summarize, Wachapreague demonstrated in 1990 the prof ile of a rural town with

an older, retired population with some 41 percent of residen ts receiving income in the form of

transfer payments from retirement funds and/or Social Security. Of the employed residen ts of

the town, only one-third works within the com munity. Thus approxim ately 70 percent of the

working population earned income from sources other than the com munity’s businesses. The

businesses of the town are fishery-oriented, with respon dents suggesting that direct

employment and earnings in the recreational and commercial fishery sectors are split 2:1

between the two sectors. Since the recreational fishery is highly seasonal, peak employment

in Wachapreague may exceed 100 jobs at the height of the summer season.

"The dependence of some 20 percent of com mun ity households for income earned

from fishing related activities indicates that this is a fishery dependent com mun ity

econom ically. As noted it is estimated that two-thirds of this income is related to recreational

fisheries and one-third to commercial fisheries. The proportion of long-term residents, fishing

related com mun ity events and activities, and the number of retirees, indicate that the social

and cultural needs of the population are satisfied by this water-front com mun ity and that

fishing, both commercial and recreational, is substan tially engaged in by the residen ts of the

com munity.

"W ith regard to the dogfish fishe ry, the packinghouse and its vess els employ some 20

persons. Any changes in the dogfish fishery wou ld direc tly impact these persons and this

business. Alternative employment might be availa ble in an expansion of the services related

to the recreational fishery and in charter-boat operations in the long-term, but more likely

displaced packing house employees wou ld need to find work in the poultry processing and

trucking businesses of Accomack Coun ty and the Delmarva Peninsula. For the watermen

affected by any changes in the dogfish fishe ry, the future is less bright. Dogfish make up 65.2

percen t, by weight, of the catches landed in Wachapreague, and thus a major portion of the

local vess els seasonal round of fishing. The recreational fishery is large ly a small-boat and

trailer fishe ry, and future opportunities to enter the seasonal charter fisheries wou ld require a

significant upward demand in charter boat services. In a worst case scenario of loss of the

dogfish fishery due to stock failure or management action, the com mun ity wou ld probably lose

a significant portion of its community-based winter emp loymen t, and wou ld have to rely on

seasonal recreational fishery-related employment and businesses. "

Fisheries Profile, Other Virginia Ports

To this point we have focused on the ports known to be engaged in ocean fisheries,

as well as some of the waterman fisheries surrounding them, nam ely the Delmarva pen insu la

128

counties of Northampton and Accomack and York Coun ty on the western shore of Virginia.

W e here sum mar ize NMFS weigh-out data on the rest of Virginia 's fishing communities, which

are found up the Potomac River toward Washington, DC, as well as up the York and James

Rivers, and which are found on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Northumberland,

Middlesex, Mathews, Gloucester and other counties. Note that the State of Virgin ia’s Marine

Resources Comm ission has its own weighout landings data.

Landings are dominated by the menhaden fishe ry, which provided 92% of the weight

of fish and shellfish landed in 1998 and 60% of the value, for this category. Reedsville, VA,

(Northumberland Cou nty) is the site of a menhaden processing firm, and menhaden are

landed at numerous places around the bay. They are caught prim arily in purse seines and

pound nets. Purse seines accounted for 60% of all landings by value, and fish pound -nets

produced 6% of the value.

Blue crabs are next in significance and activit y: 4% of the landings and 26% of the

value in 1998. The pot fishery is very important. Crabs are also caught in dredges in places

such as Cape Hen ry; in special pound-nets; with scrapes; and with baited trot-lines. Oysters

and hard clams or quahogs (total 2.5% of value) are still impo rtant, although the oyster fishery

has declined grea tly, and oyster shucking houses have disappeared from many former sites.

In some areas oyster and clam farming is growing. The harvest techniques include treading

("by hand"), dredges, scrapes, and tongs and grabs, patent and other.

Recovery of striped bass (rockfish) in the region is reflected in its value (2.6% of the

total). Comm on or haul seines, fyke nets, pound nets, gill-nets, and handlines are used for

rockfish. A similar complex of fishing techniques is used for another species of high value in

the region, Atlan tic croaker (4% value).

Tab le VA-O1: Landings by Gear Type, Other Virginia, 1998

GEAR TYPE : OTHER VA LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

By hand, by hand, oyster 0.0 0.0

Comm on, Haul Seine 0.6 1.3

Dredge, Crab 0.3 1.8

Dredge, Other 0.0 0.0

Dredge, Oyster 0.0 0.2

Fyke Net, Fish 0.0 0.0

Gill Net, Drift 0.1 0.5

Gill Net, Sink 0.6 2.8

Gill Net, Stake 0.0 0.1

Gill Net, Other 0.0 0.0

Gill Net, Set/Stake, Sea Bass 0.0 0.0

Handline 0.0 0.1

Longline, Bottom 0.0 0.0

Pots & Traps, Blue Crab 3.8 23.5

Pots & Traps, Eel 0.0 0.3

Pots & Traps, Fish 0.2 0.2

Pound Net, Crab 0.0 0.6

Pound Net, Fish 2.7 5.7

Purse Seine Menhaden 85.6 55.9

Purse Seine, Other 6.0 3.9

Scrapes 0.0 0.1

Tongs & Grabs, Clam, Patent 0.0 1.5

Tongs & Grabs, Oyster 0.0 0.2

Otter Tra wl, Fish 0.0 0.0

Trot Line 0.0 0.0

129

Total Landings, rounded, 1998: 518,622,600 lbs.

Total Value, rounded, 1998: $63,551,500 dollars

Note: The entry "0.0" indicates some activity but less than 0.06 percen t.

Tab le VA-O2: Landings by Major Species, Other Virginia, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES: OTHER VA LBS. (%) VALUE (%)

Bass, Striped 0.2 2.6

Crab, Blue 4.1 25.9

Croaker, Atlan tic 1.4 4.0

Menhaden 92.3 60.3

Number of Species:62

Other species of MAFMC interest landed in other Virgin ia ports include Butterfish (0.0%

value), Summer Flounder (0.5%, mostly from pound nets), Atlan tic Mackerel (0.0), Scup (0.0),

and Black Sea Bass (0.0).

130

7. North Carolina’s Fishing Counties and Ports

The commercial fisheries of North Carolina are found in the coastal ports of

Wanchese, on Roanoke Island, and Morehead City, Beaufort, Ocracoke, and Hatteras on the

Outer Banks. They also take place from various inland communities on the sounds --Pamlico,

Albemarle, Core, and others--from which people fish in both the sounds and the ocean.

Marine and estuarine commercial fishing is very widespread, including communities in 33

counties of the state (Table NC1). In the 5 counties representing the fishing ports mentioned

above (Dare, Cartere t, Hyde, Pamlico and Beaufort), 1998 landings ranged from about 10 to

over 80 million pounds. These are the counties we studied in some deta il; their 1998 landings

represented over 70% of the total value for the state. However, in 9 other counties between 1

and 4.5 million pounds were landed, and in 19 more counties the landings were less than 1

million pounds, and in some cases less than 1,000 pounds. W e provide brief fisheries profiles

for most of these counties. Altogether they accounted for little more than 2% of the total state

value. Note that commercial fisheries data are kept on a county bas is rather than port bas is

by the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, the source of the data used, and that many

of the data are con fiden tial, due to there being only one or two dealers involved.

An interview with a representative of the state ’s marine fisheries agency revealed that,

like the other Mid-Atlan tic states, North Caro lina's fisheries are highly diverse, oriented toward

the rich estuarine and inshore environm ents but extending offshore and up and down the

coast as well. Diversity includes gear-types used, some of which are unusual in the Mid-

Atlan tic region. An examp le is flynetting, which had been used south of Cape Hatteras for

catching weakfish and croakers but was banned in certa in areas in recent years because of

the bycatch of sm all weakfish. Also typical of Mid-Atlan tic fisheries, North Carolina fishers and

fishing companies must be adaptab le to survive. For example, a company involved with squ id

joint ventures is now relying heavily on Pamlico Sound haul seiners for much of its fish during

the summer months (spot, croaker, Spanish macke rel, some flounder). One outstanding

characte ristic of North Carolina fishermen is how mobile they are; they not only move from one

area of the state to another, as in the case of the inland and inshore fishermen, but also move

to various offshore latitudes off the east coast. The ports of Virginia, New Jers ey, New York

Connecticut, Mass achus etts are well known to North Carolina offshore fishers. According to a

now-retired fisherman living in Belhaven in Beaufort Cou nty, during the ‘80s he and some

other North Carolina fishermen followed summer flounder up the coast to New England,

hauling in tremendous catches off Connecticut and Massachusetts, thereby helping to further

develop the summer flounder industry in that part of the Atlan tic Coas t. When the Mid-Atlan tic

Fishery Management Council's summer flounder regulations were instituted, based on state-

by-state quotas, some of these states effectively forced the North Carolina fishers closer to

home.

Excellent descriptions of North Carolina’s fisheries are availa ble and need not be

repeated here in deta il (Diaby 1999, North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993, and

references cited below). A major trend has been the increased role of flounders, dogfish and

tunas in the value of North Caro lina's fisheries (Diaby 1999: 5). Another is the decline of clams

and oysters and the increased importance of peeler and soft crabs.. Another generalization is

that although the ocean-going fisheries are major producers of seafood and value, the

estuarine and riverine fisheries continue to play significan t, although changing, roles, and

“fishing communities” are found scattered around huge areas of the state. “Tra ditional”

techniques such as pound -nets and haul-seines continue. Thus, although crabbing--with pots,

trotlines, and trawls-- is the major activity in the bays and sounds, pound nets are also

important. Depending on the time of year, there can be hundreds of pound nets in each of the

state's large sounds, there being no limit as yet to this fishing technique.

131

Table NC1: 1998 Commercial Landings for North Carolina by

County (sorted by value)

County Pounds Value

Top Five Counties:

DARE 36,625,788 23,511,472

CARTERET 80,417,358 21,332,074

HYDE 16,079,780 10,921,548

PAMLICO 10,502,333 9,271,847

BEAUFORT 10,146,982 8,035,148

Other Counties with Landings over 1,000,000 Pounds

ONSLOW 2,667,317 5,219,210

BRUNSWICK 2,998,815 4,849,211

PASQUOTANK 3,823,232 3,498,661

TYRRELL 4,745,545 3,317,877

NEW HANOVER 2,042,012 2,897,820

PERQUIMANS 1,911,045 1,819,884

CURRITUCK 2,080,720 1,813,167

CAMDEN 1,691,873 1,533,701

CHOW AN 1,801,901 918,756

Counties with Landings under 1,000,000 Pounds

PENDER * *

CRAVEN * *

WASHINGTON * *

BERT IE * *

COLUMBUS * *

PITT * *

HERTFORD * *

HALIFAX * *

DUP LIN * *

LEE * *

BLADEN * *

MAR TIN * *

WAKE * *

WAYNE * *

JONES * *

LENO IR * *

ORANGE * *

ROBESON * *

JOHNSTON * *

Total 177,534,701 98,940,376

Source: North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries Listed in descending

order by value of landings

* = Data not shown to protect confidentiality

Some deta ils on the ocean fisheries are in order. The winter trawl fishery is a major

producer, from September to April, and involves fishing grounds as far north as New York

132

(North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 4). Catches are landed at ports from

Wanchese to Beaufort-Morehead City, and throughout the Pamlico Sound. Wanchese is,

however, the site of the primary landing facilities; in the early 1990s 30-40 vess els offloaded at

6 fish houses (North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 4). Beaufort-Morehead City

is the 2nd largest port, with 5-6 fish houses serving 10-15 full-tim e trawlers. In the early 1990s

there were 26 to 32 other trawlers fishing out of both Oregon and Ocracoke Inlets and packing

out of ports of Lowland, Vandemere, Bayboro, Englehard, Pamlico Beach and Oriental.

The nearshore flounder segment of this fishe ry, November through January, is when

the mid -Atlan tic trawler fleet, and North Carolina, conce ntrate on summer flounder. Before

and after this period, the North Carolina fleet might also engage in two other techniques:

deepwater fishing and flynetting. Some traditio nally fished for summer flounder off southern

New England as well. The deepwater fishery ma inly involves boats from Wanchese, as well as

Hampton, Virginia, fishing off shoals to the north of Nor folk canyon, targeting summer

flounder, scup, and black sea bass. A variety of trawls may be used, including flynets, but

flynetting is also seen as a discrete fishe ry. The flynet is a high-rising trawl, used in deep

water for schools of scup but generally used in shallower waters for Atlan tic croaker, weakfish,

bluefish, and butterfish. Sometimes huge catches are made, requiring the marketing of fish

for non-food uses ("scrap fish"), and raising concerns about effects on fish populations.

The importance of an estuarine trawl fishery is unique to North Carolina (North

Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 29). Most shrim p are caught in estuarine waters,

and trawling also takes place for blue crabs. Most brown and pink shrim p are caught in flat

otter trawls; white shrim p involve different trawls ("tongue trawls"), and channel nets and

butte rfly nets may be used on all species. The fishery involves 45-60foot vessels, with sing le

or mu ltiple trawl nets; the larger vess els may stay out on the sound for several days at a time,

while smaller ones take daily trips. Crab trawling involves boats 30-50 feet, shrimpers which

convert during non-shrimping seasons. Both of these fisheries are receiving increased

scrutiny because of by-catch and benthic habitat issues (North Carolina Division of Marine

Fisheries 1999).

The ocean sink net (gill net) fishery of North Carolina is also a multispecies fishe ry,

which typica lly takes place in the winter and spring (December - April), in inshore waters along

the beaches, focusing on the wintering grounds for bluefish, weakfish and Atlan tic croaker.

The fleet is usually found at Hatteras; at the beginning and end of the season, some may also

be at Wanchese, and there are crews that fish out of other places as well (North Carolina

Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 37). This fishery rapid ly expanded during the late 1980s.

Another important North Carolina fishery is for offshore reef fish, notably black sea

bass and other groupers and snappers, as well as porgies, grunts, tilefish, and other species.

Wreckfish were important in the early 1990s, too (North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries

1993: 42), but did not appear in the 1998 landings. There is an important recreational

headboat and charter boat fishe ry, as well as a commercial fishe ry, using handlines, bottom

longlines, and fish traps. The most important ports are Beaufort-Morehead City and

Southp ort. In the early 1990s, approxim ately 40 full-tim e commercial vess els landed reef fish

and probably twice that many other boats, charter boats in the off-season and non-resident

boats (North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 42).

Interview, July 1999

W e talked at length with a representative of the North Carolina Department of

Environment and Natural Resources, who provided some of the generalizations used above

as well as a sketch of regulatory issues.

Before we arrived at the state offices, a number of people had already complained

vehe mently to us about the summer flounder regulations. The state official said this is

133

because “anywhere along the water [whether they fish in the sounds, inshore or offsho re], any

fisherman is affected by the summer flounder regulations”. North Carolina apparen tly has

been #1 in summer flounder landings in recent years and has almost 32% of the commercial

allocation for the east coast. It has also been #1 in commercial landings of bluefish in the last 5

years, and #2 in spiny dogfish. He said that anyone inshore or offshore can be involved in the

bluefish fishery since the blues are found in both the sounds and the ocean. He said that North

Carolina also has a significant monkfish fishe ry, but that state fishermen were closed out of it

this year (1999) due to a missed control date. He then reiterated what another individual said

about sea scallops and added that the nearest bed, 30 to 40 miles off the North

Carolina/Virgin ia line, had been closed last year.

According to our inform ant, weakfish are very significant to the North Carolina

indus try. He also mentioned that squ id are taken by just a few people. One of the individ uals

who takes squ id docks his boat in Hampton, VA. This individual had docked at Oregon Inlet,

which gives Wanchese boats access to the ocean but repo rtedly shoals over from time to

time. He decided to move his boat after he went aground there.

The case of black sea bass is complicated. North of Cape Hatteras, black sea bass

comes under the Mid-Atlan tic Fishery Management Council's plan, lumped together with

summer flounder and scup. South of the cape, however, it comes under the South Atlan tic

Fishery Management Cou ncil plan as snapper and grouper. The two plans used to have

different size limits but now both share a 10” limit. However, while the Mid-Atlan tic plan has no

creel limit, the southern plan has a 20 fish per day limit. Fishing techniques are also quite

different north and south of the cape. There is more trawling than potting for black sea bass

north of Hatteras, while the oppos ite is true south of the cape. Our informant said that the

black sea bass fishery is more significant than that for scup, but less significant than either

summer flounder or weakfish. For the trawlers, it is often an incidental catch when they go for

squ id or butterfish.

Soc io-Ec onomic Dimensions of the Fisheries

Some families have developed large harvesting, processing and marketing

operations, but sm all-sc ale owner-operator fishing, often involving mem bers of a household,

remains the norm. In more highly developed coastal areas, such as Beaufort and Wanchese,

recreational fishing has a major presence as well, and fishing infrastructure competes with that

of tourism and housing developmen t.

Fishing is important to North Caro lina's econom y. Diaby (1999) showed that the

228.5 million pounds of seafood landed in 1997 generated as many as 27,000 direct jobs, in

harvesting, processing, wholesale, retail, and food service, and that through its direct and

indirect efforts, the commercial harvesting sector alone may have generated about 22,000

jobs in 1997 (Diaby 1999: vi). However, these figures are estimated based on the

questionable assumption that the number of "endorsement to sell" (ETS) licenses is a good

measu re of participation; actual participation is likely to be considerably lower (Diaby 1999:

35).

Diaby's study, which included data from trip tickets, the state ETS licenses, and other

sources, also showed average fishing incomes in comparison with average annual wage per

worker in each of the coastal counties of North Carolina. In the counties with major fisheries

(Hyde, Pamlico, Dare, Beaufort, and Carteret), average income from commercial fishing

exceeded the average annual income for all workers (Diaby 1999: 35). This was also true for

Tyre ll Cou nty. In the other counties, income from fishing was considerably lower than the

average annual wage per worker; this is interpreted as due to the fact that many commercial

fishermen in those counties are part-time, supplementing other jobs or retirement income

(Diaby 1999:34). However, there is no question that many North Carolina communities are

heavily dependent on fishing. The people who fish and process and market fish live and work

134

out of the sm all towns and unincorporated communities that are scattered along the state's

estuarine shoreline.

On behalf of a state steering committee set up to make plans for the future during

North Carolina’s moratorium on entry to the commercial fisheries, anthrop ologists and others

from East Carolina Univers ity and Duke Univers ity provided a valua ble set of data on the

soc io-ec onomic characteristics of North Carolina fishers. The regions used in their studies,

carried out in 1995, were (1) the Albemarle Area (Currituck, Camden, Paquotank,

Perquimans, Chowan, Bertie, Washington, and Tyre ll Counties); (2) Dare Cou nty; (3)

Southern Area (Brunswick, Pender, Newhaven, and Onslow Counties); (4) Pamlico Area

(Craven, Pamlico, Beaufort, and Hyde Counties); (5) Carteret Cou nty; and (6) Inland Counties.

Although they cannot be associated with specific ports or, in most cases, specific counties,

their data provide valua ble information about the social and dem ographic features of the

fisheries and should be key sources for social and econom ic impact analyses for specific

fishery management plans. Only a few generalizations from their reports can be offered here.

According to Johnson and Orbach (1996), who interviewed a sam ple of 388 people

with commercial fishing licenses and/or “endors eme nts to sell” (ETS), most North Carolina

commercial fishermen have highly diversified annual rounds, which often includes shoreside

work such as construction or farming. The patterns and combinations vary among regions.

For example, in the Carteret Coun ty area and the southern area (Onslow, Pender New

Hanover, and Brunswick counties), shrim p trawling was the most important but it ranked third

in the Pamlico area (Hyde, Beaufort, Pamlico, and Craven counties). Shrim p trawlers in Dare

Coun ty were unlikely to use crab pots but those of the southern counties did. Some are more

vulne rable than others to environmental and regulatory change, too; thus, Johnson and

Orbach (1996: 66) noted that fishermen of the Pamlico area were at most risk because they

have fewer alternatives availa ble to them.

The commercial fishermen surveyed were 96% male, 97% white/Caucasian, and

2.7% African-American. Part-timers tended to be older than full-timers, possibly because of

participation by retirees (Johnson and Orbach 1996: 9). Education levels, fam ily size, average

age and years fished, household composition and the role of fishing for households, among

other variables, vary grea tly among the regions they studied. The heterog eneity found in these

and other variables sugge sts the need for focused, con text-specific studies (Johnson and

Orbach 1996: 12). It is interesting though that in all of the areas studied families are both

dependent on and involved in fishing. Although in all areas the dominant pattern is that the

respondent was the only one in the household engaged in fishing (ranging from 58% in the

Pamlico Area to 77.4% in the Carteret area: p. 19), a spouse or significant other is involved in

from 17% (Cartere t) to 21% (Albe rmarle Area) of the households (p. 20). Sim ilarly high

percentages of households have offspring involved. The general pattern is that the most rural

areas have the highest participation of fam ily mem bers (spouses and offspring and parents) in

the commercial fishing enterprise (p. 20). But another significant feature is that 67% of the

respondents’ spouses worked either full-tim e or part- time outside fishing; in this day and age it

is very difficult to live on fishing alone.

One important point from these studies that should be taken into account throughout

the Mid-Atlan tic and South Atlan tic regions, is that one cannot always rely on state commercial

license data as indicators of how many people are engaged in commercial fishing. In North

Carolina, fewer than 10% of the 20,000-plus fishermen in the state who held commercial

fishing licenses in 1994 actually sold more than $10,000 worth of seafood annually (Griffith

and Rulifson 1996: 2). Some fish prim arily for personal consumption or recreation, some have

licenses because of tax and other financial benefits which accrue to possessors of commercial

licenses, and some hold licenses for future use, even though they may not have ever fished

com mercially (Johnson and Orbach 1996: ii-iii). A related point is difficulty distinguishing

between recreational and commercial activities and motives, as shown in a special study of

the undocumented “rec reatio nal” shrim p trawl fishery (Griffith and Rulifson 1996). The

135

classificatory problem has been addressed through research identifying seven categories: full-

time, owner-operator fishermen; full-tim e fleet fishermen; part-time, retired or poor fishermen;

part- time fishermen with full-tim e shore-based emp loymen t; professional recreational

fishermen (pier owners, charter boat captains); independent recreational fishermen; and

recreational fishermen who belong to fishing clubs (Griffith 1996). .

Another lesson from this research is that self-description as “full-time” or “part-time”

may be misleading without further information. Johnson and Orbach (1996:21) found that

one-third of the “full-time” fishers in the sam ple reported shore-based work other than fishing.

Using 50% and over of income from fishing for “full-time” and under 50% for “part-time” is

another way to depict different degrees of dependence on and involvement in fishing, which

seemed to come close to regional self-descriptions. As might be expected, people in the

more isolated rural areas, such as the Albemarle area, Dare Cou nty, and the Pamlico Area,

are more likely to depend on fishing for 50% or more of their income than people in the more

populated Southern Area and Carteret Coun ty (Ibid: 27).

This discussion serves as a reminder that North Carolina fishers, like so many others

of the Mid-Atlan tic and South-Atlantic, are “watermen” or “baym en,” that is, people who find

ways to rem ain in their coastal or estuarine homes by adapting to the challenges and

opportunities that come along. Supporting this is another significant finding in North Carolina,

that people who leave full-tim e commercial fishing, however defined, are likely to continue

fishing at some level, apparen tly reluctant to give up the fishing life-s tyle and the income and

flexibility afforded. Garrity-Blake (1996), who found and interviewed 30 Carteret Coun ty

residen ts reported to have left commercial fishing, found that only 10 had actually stopped

fishing: “...ex-commercial fishers of Carteret Coun ty are difficult to find” (p. 5). Those who

found other primary employment continued to participate in shrimping, mulleting, scalloping,

menhaden fishing, etc. from time to time or somehow fit into their regular work schedules.

Moreover, almost all respondents, whether or not they still fished, said that they considered

themselves “watermen” (Ibid: 2), which sugge sts unwillingness to give up the possibility of

fishing given uncertain and risky futures as well as the essential occupational pluralism of

many coastal lifeways.

Dependence on or independence from buyers or dealers is an important social

variable. Johnson and Orbach (1996: 39,40) found a very high rate of reported independence

but more dependence in Dare and Carteret Counties, which happen to be the sites of some of

the state ’s largest and most influential dealers. Dealers have organized and encouraged large

fleets of crabbers in the Albemarle and Pamlico areas and of ocean-going trawlers in

Wanchese (Griffith 1996:44). In these and other places fishermen may be dependent on

seafood dealers through financing or limited access to ice, mooring space, and other

necessities, and relationships between harvesters and dealers can be stab le through personal

loyalty as well. However, most fishermen have some degree of independence, an essential

source of flexib ility.

Reinforcing the value on (and providing an explanation for a source of)

independence is the fact that that full-tim e fishers surveyed have large ly avoided outside

financing for their vess els (Johnson and Orbach 1996: 46). But there is considerable

variation. This variation is evident in data on owner/ca ptain and crew. In the northeastern,

Albermarle area, the dominant pattern is only one crew member at the mos t, who is usually a

relative or friend, rather than “hired help.” In Dare Coun ty and the Pamlico Area, hired help is

more important, reflecting the existence of larger fishing operations. The Southern Area has

more fam ily and friends than hired help, reflecting smaller operations (like those of

Albermarle),and Carteret also has bulk of crew either fam ily or friends (Johnson and Orbach

1996: 46).

Another important dimension is the pattern of “historical participation .” Johnson and

Orbach (1996: 50-57) show 5 year trends for each of the areas studied, distinguishing

136

between primary and secondary gear types. Pots were the only gear type to experience net

increases in all areas over the time studied. The annual rounds are probably the most

important but also the most complex attributes of the sociology of fishing. Johnson and

Orbach (1996: 57-66) offer a network ana lysis of fishing rounds which show the network of

relations among fisheries per study area. Thus, in the Albermarle Area and Dare Cou nty, it

can be seen that crab potting is cen tral, but there are different clusters or cliques involving

other fisheries (p. 59). Other study areas have different patterns. The deta ils of these

patterns are very important for revealing differential vulnerabilities to policy and environmental

changes. Thus, for example, in Carteret Coun ty shrim p trawling is a central component of

almost all other fisheries, such that changes in policy or environment for shrim p trawling will

affect those also involved in pound netting, crab trawling, and mechanized clamming (p. 66).

Griffith (1996) makes the point that whether crabbing or shrimping appears as the primary

fishe ry, virtua lly all commercial fishers are involved in gill-netting for some part of their annual

rounds.

Another important social dimension is conflict over space (between fixed and mobile

gears, especia lly in areas dominated by crab potting, gill nets, and other fixed gears; or within

a gear type, as in many crabbing areas) and between commercial and recreational fishers.

Here, too, there is great regional variation (Griffith 1996).

The North Carolina research also focused on the question of alternatives fishers

perceive if they were excluded from a fishery (Johnson and Orbach 1996: 73-76). Most wou ld

opt to shift to another species; otherwise, the full-tim e fishers are split between finding

temporary work or leaving fishing entire ly, while the part- time fishers wou ld opt for leaving

entire ly (p. 73). The management issue is, of course, the direction of the shift to another

species, and in 1996 it appeared to be toward flounder from crab potting in the Albermarle

area, with different options and alternatives in other areas. The lesson is how important it is to

understand linkages among fisheries, in order to anticipate responses to management by

restriction.

Limited entry was the context for the North Carolina studies and the focus of part of

the interviews. A major concern was that limited entry gives manage rs more control, rather

than less control (as econo mists might maintain) over fishe rmen’s lives (p. 76). Although

people expressed varying degrees of misunderstanding, suspicion, and distrust of limited

entry programs, there was general agreement that this is a good way to go for many of North

Carolina’s fisheries (p. 87). However, issues of new entrants, competition for space, and

overcrow ding– all seemingly related to the need for limiting entry–were seen as less

prob lematic than water qua lity, first and forem ost, and second either the lack of fisherman

voice in fisheries management or too many fisheries regulations (p. 89). The specifics varied

among regions, for example, the fishermen in the Pamlico region more concerned about the

discovery of the toxic dinoflage llate pfies teria picimorte than those of Albermalre regions, who

worried about discharge from pulp mills and those of almost all regions who were most

concerned about the growth of contract hog production and its related pollutants (Griffith 1996:

4).

Johnson and Orbach (1996) also focus on state management questions that focus on

crab-potting and gill-netting. The data presented, however, should be incorporated into social

and econom ic analyses of the effects of fishery management alternatives for EEZ species as

well, given the linkages between crab-potting, inshore gill-netting and other fisheries in some

North Carolina areas.

The rest of this chapter provides census, fisheries, and field information on the major

counties and fishing ports of North Carolina, focusing on Cartere t, Dare, Hyde, Beaufort, and

Pamlico Counties. Some soc io-ec onomic and fisheries information is also provided for other

coastal and inland counties involved in commercial fishing in 1998.

137

Wilmington South

W e did not visit the area from Wilmington south to the South Carolina border.

According to Griffith (1996: 31-35), the fishery is prim arily shrim p trawling and gill-netting in a

relatively urbanized and rapid ly developing region. It has suffered from the collapse of oyster

and clam stocks and is subject to pollution and nutrient loading from golf courses, new

industries, and the growing hog industry as well as dredging for coastal developmen t.

Recreational/commercial conflicts are intense, and the fish houses are overwhelmed by tourist

traffic in the summer months. Jet skis and recreational boats often increase crowding

problems for fishers. As in other urbanized areas, fishermen often have a long-term strategy of

switching between fishing and non-fishing work. Following are brief descriptions of counties in

this area based on State of North Carolina fisheries data and other sources:

New Hanover Coun ty (pop. 146,601, 1997), the southern stretch of the state's coast,

had landings over 2 million lbs. and almost 3 million dollars in 1998, from a wide spread of

species, including shrimp, blue crabs and oysters, but also fluke, porgies, sea basses, of Mid-

Atlan tic concern, as well as spot, groupers, grunts, mullets, and king mackerel (out of a total of

55 species landed). In terms of value, shrim p led at 20%, followed by groupers (18.6%), blue

crabs (17%), and king mackerel (10.8%). Oysters and seabasses were also major

contributors to the econom y. In 1990 145 white males and 2 white females said they were

fishers on the census, and 32 white males said they were captains or officers on fishing

vessels. In 1997, 548 ETS were issued; the average fishing income was $7,456, compared

with $25,067 average annual wage per worker (Diaby 1999: 35).

Onslow Coun ty (pop. 147,352, 1997), between Wilmington and Morehead City and

encompassing the New River, had total landings in 1998 of 2.7 million lbs. worth over 5 million

dollars. 63% of the value came from shrim p and hard clams but the rest was fairly even ly

spread over other species: blue crabs, fluke, groupers, kingfishes, mullets, oysters, sea

basses, and spot. Sim ilarly, the gear-types are highly varied, including the full array of

estuarine techniques as well as spear diving (for groupers, sharks, sea bass, and other

species). Hydraulic dredging and "clam trawl kicking" are also significant in this area. The

1990 census showed 189 white males and 35 white females as fishers, and 19 white males as

captains or officers on fishing vessels. According to Diaby (1999: 35), there were 707 ETS

issued in 1997, and the average fishing income was $9,963, a little more than half the average

annual wage per worker, suggesting that fishing tends to be a part- time occupation in this

county.

Jones Cou nty, upriver from Onslow Cou nty, had very sm all landings. Dup lin Cou nty,

far inland on the NE Cape Fear River, reported a very sm all amount of shrim p trawling and gill­

netting in 1998. In 1990 no one was a fisher in the census.

Carteret Region

Fishing in the Carteret region is influenced by real estate development along the coast

and the availability of jobs at the Cherry Point military installation and other areas throughout

Morehead City and Beaufort. Con sequently, there are many “part-time” but serious fishers

who have full-tim e shore-side jobs and conflicts with full-tim e fishers. The area also has

significant recreational boating and fishing. Griffith (1996: 35-37) found that the principal social

problems were conflicts between recreational and commercial fishers and between large and

sm all operators and ‘full-time’ and ‘part-time’ fishers; and real estate developmen t.

Comm ercial fishers tend to have highly flexible, multiple-gear and -target species fishing

operations, often with the use of spouses with mates, and to move between casual

employment ashore and fishing. The ir primary gears are shrim p trawl, gill net, scalop and

clam dredge and crab pots, and the principal ecological issues are pollution and nutrient

loading, brown and red tides, and pfiesteria.

138

Carteret County Profile (includes fishing centers of Morehead City, Beaufort, Bettie, Harker’s

Island, Davis, Stacy, Sea Leve l, Atlantic, Cedar Island)

Population

According to the 1990 Census, Carteret Coun ty had a total population of 52,556 (59,057 in

199710). Of the total population, women outnumbered men by a sm all percentage. Rural

population was 76.4% of the total, though only 402 people lived on farms.

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

More than 90% of the county’s population was white. The next largest racial group was black,

at 8.3%. There were sm all numbers of American Indian and Asian residents. The Hisp anic

population was also very sm all, at 0.8%. Only 596 people in the county were foreign-born, and

64.6% of the native-born population was born in North Carolina. The most prevalent

ancestries reported were English (15,151 people); German (8,862); and Irish (8,600).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest at 16,719 people, or 31.8%. Population

under 18 years old was 22.5% and 14.3% of the population was 65 years of age or older.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 21,238 households in Carteret Cou nty, 71.9% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 83% contained married couples and 13.2% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.43 people were in each household, but 23.9% of the total householders lived

alone.

Of the 21,238 households, 25.8% were renter occupied. There were 13,338 vacant housing

units in the county, 10,138 of which were for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. The

homeowner vacancy rate was 3.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 23.9%. The median

value of owner-occupied housing units was $73,100 in 1989 and median rent was $280. One-

unit detached housing comprised 50.6% of all housing units and mobile homes and trailers

27.8%.

Educational Trends

In Carteret Cou nty, 75.5% of the population 25 years of age or older was a high school

gradua te or higher; 16.2% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1990 Census, per capita income for the county was $13,227 and median

household income was $25,811. Of the 51,517 people for whom poverty status was

determined in 1989, 5,977, or 11.6%, were below the poverty line. According to Diaby (1999:

35), in 1997 the average fishing income was $21,123, compared with an average annual wage

per worker for Carteret Coun ty of $18,229 in 1997.

Employment

Of the 41,915 people 16 years of age or older in Carteret Coun ty in 1989, 63.6% were in the

labor force. Of these, 94.3% were in the civilian labor force, of which 5.2% were unemployed.

More recent unemployment figures for the county were 4.4% in 1997 and 4.5% in 1998. The

county shows seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment was

7.7% in January, ranged from 3.1% to 3.6% from April through October, and was then back up

to 6.9% in January 1999.

Employment Industries

7 1997 population figures are from Diaby (1999: 35), based on the July 1997 estimate of the Office of State Planning, Office of the Governor.

139

Of the 23,837 employed people 16 years or older, 1,249, or 5.2%, were in the agriculture,

forestry and fisheries industries sector. (In 1997, there were 1,951 "Endors eme nts to Sell"

issued by the state; Diaby 1999: 35). The largest sector of all was retail, at 23.6%, followed by

sales occupations at 15.3%. The next largest occupations were precision production, craft

and repair; service occupations; professional specialty; and administrative suppo rt.

Government workers comprised 24.1% of the work force [many part- time fishermen are called

“Cherry-Pointers” because they work in a military facility at Cherry Point–Garrity-Blake 1996],

and there were 2,474 self-employed workers. Gen erally, Morehead City and Cherry Point in

Carteret Coun ty provide significant non-fishing jobs for people in coastal communities,

possibly accounting for the fact that Carteret Cou nty’s fishing households sampled had more

people working, on the average, than in other areas studied (Johnson and Orbach 1996: 15).

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

According to the 1990 Census, there were 86 fishing vessel captains or officers in Carteret

Cou nty, all of which were white men. There were 560 men and 31 women engaged in fishing

as an occupation. Of the men, 511 were white, 36 were black, and 13 were American Indian.

Of the women, 24 were white and 7 were black.

Fisheries Profile, Carteret County, NC (includes fishing centers of Morehead City, Beaufort,

Bettie, Harker’s Island, Davis, Stacy, Sea Leve l, Atlantic, Cedar Island)

Carteret Coun ty has the largest fishery in terms of poundage and second largest in terms of

value in North Carolina (Table NC1). Total 1998 landings were over 80 million lbs, but value

was little more than 21 million lbs., large ly due to the low value of species such as menhaden

and thread herring caught by purse-seining. Other important fisheries were crab-potting,

shrim p trawling, fluke trawling, hard-clamming, and the use of pound-nets, sink gill nets,

longlines, and other gears for a large variety of finfishes (the total number of species landed

was 69) (Tables NC-CC1, 2).

140

Tab le NC-CC1: Landings by Gear Type, Carteret Cou nty, North Carolina, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS. % VALUE %

Beach seine 0.0% 0.0%

By hand 0.1% 2.0%

Cast net 0.1% 0.0%

Channel net 0.1% 0.5%

Clam dredge (hydraulic) 0.0% 0.7%

Clam trawl, kicking 0.1% 2.2%

Comm on seine 0.0% 0.0%

Crab pot 6.0% 13.4%

Crab trawl 0.6% 1.4%

Fish pot 0.0% 0.2%

Flounder trawl 2.4% 9.1%

Flynet 0.6% 0.7%

Gigs 0.0% 0.1%

Gill net (drift) 0.1% 0.1%

Gill net (runaround) 0.5% 1.1%

Gill net set (float) 0.4% 1.1%

Gill net set (sink) 3.7% 5.4%

Haul seine 1.7% 2.9%

Longline bottom 0.0% 0.1%

Longline surface 0.1% 0.9%

Other (including conf.) 78.7% 22.8%

Oyster dredge 0.0% 0.1%

Peeler pot 0.0% 0.1%

Pound net 1.0% 5.5%

Purse seine 0.0% 0.0%

Rakes bull 0.0% 0.5%

Rakes hand 0.2% 3.8%

Rod-n-reel 0.8% 5.0%

Scallop dredge (bay) 0.1% 1.1%

Scallop dredge (sea) 0.0% 0.0%

Scallop scoop 0.0% 0.0%

Scallop trawl 0.0% 0.0%

Shrim p trawl 2.4% 16.7%

Skimmer trawl 0.1% 1.1%

Swipe net 0.0% 0.0%

Tongs, hand 0.0% 0.8%

Trolling 0.1% 0.4%

Total landings, rounded, 1998: 80,417,400 lbs.

Total value, rounded, 1998: 21,332,100 dollars

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Tab le NC-CC2: Landings by Major Species, Carteret Cou nty, NC, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES >2% LBS. % VALUE %

Unclassified shrim p 1.9% 16.7%

Crabs, blue, hard 7.1% 15.4%

Croaker, atlan tic 2.7% 3.0%

Flounders, fluke 2.0% 14.0%

Other (including conf.) 78.7% 22.8%

Spot 1.5% 2.4%

Weakfish (seatrou t, grey) 1.6% 2.8%

Clam, hard (meats) 0.4% 9.2%

Groupers 0.2% 1.9%

Number of species: 69

Both estuarine and offshore fisheries are found in Carteret Cou nty, reflected, for

example, in the fact that gear-types included both sea scallop dredges and bay scallop

dredges. Tab le NC-CC3 shows the high diversity of the fisheries of Carteret Coun ty by listing

the species landed per each gear-type. This table also gives some idea of the large variety of

fishing technologies used in North Carolina.

Table NC-CC3: Fishing Gears and Species Landed, Carteret Cou nty, NC, 1998. (* = major part of catch)

Seines, Cast Nets, Pound Nets, Etc.

Beach seines: Bluefish, kingfishes (sea mullet), mullets*, pompano, spotted sea trout, Atlantic spadefish,

spot.

Common Seines: spot.

Haul Seines: Bluefish, butterfish, cobia, hard blue crab, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic cutlassfish, black drum, red

drum, flounders (fluke), harvestfish, hickory shad, kingfishes (sea mullet)*, Spanish mack erel, Atlantic menhad en*,

mullets, pigfish, pompano, spotted sea trout, sheepshead, Atlantic spadefish, spot*, swellfishes (puffers), wea kfish.*

Swipe nets : Bluefish, black drum, red drum, kingfishes (sea mullet), mullets*, spotted seatrout*,

sheepshead, swellfishes (puffers), weakfish.

Purse Seines: Thread herring, Atlantic menhaden.

Cast nets : Shrimp, Spanish mack erel, Atlantic menhad en*, mullets, unclassified fish.

Channel nets : mulle t, harvestfish, blue hard crab, shrim p.*

Pound Nets : Bluefish, butterfish*, carp, catfishes, cobia, hard blue crabs, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic

cutlassfish, black drum, red drum, flounders (fluke)*, harvestfish, hickory shad, jacks, kingfishes (sea mullet), Spanish

mack erel, Atlantic menhad en*, mullets, white perch, pigfish, pompano, spotted seatro ut, sheepshead, skippers,

Atlantic spadefish, spot, striped bass, swellfishes (puffers), unclassified (industrial/bait), unclassified, weakfish,

whelks/conchs.

Pots

Crab pots : blue crabs, stone crabs.

Peeler pots : blue crabs (hard, peeler*, soft).

Fish pots : Amberjacks, bluefish, Atlantic croaker, dolphinfish, groupers, grunts, hakes, hogfish, octopus,

pigfish, porgies, sea basses*, snappers, tilefish, triggerfish, unclassified fish.

Gill Nets

Drift Gill-Net: Bluefish*, butterfish, Atlantic croaker, black drum, red drum, flounders (fluke), harvestfish,

kingfishes (sea mullet), king mack erel, Spanish mack erel, Atlantic menhaden, mullets*, pigfish, pompano, spotted

seatro ut, sharks, sharks (dogfish), sheepshead, Atlantic spadefish, spot, unclassified, weakfish.

Run-Around Gill-Net: Bluefish, bonito, butterfish, cobia, Atlantic croaker, black drum, red drum, flounders

(fluke), harvestfish, hickory shad, kingfishes (sea mullet), Spanish mack erel, Atlantic menhaden, mullets*, white perch,

pigfish, pompano, spotted sea trout*, sharks (dogfish), sheepshead, spot, unclassified, weakfish.

Set Gill-Net (Floa t): Bluefish *, butterfish, carp, catfishes, hard blue crab, stone crabs, Atlantic croaker, black

drum, red drum*, flounders (fluke)*, harvestfish, hickory shad, kingfishes (sea mullet), Spanish mack erel, Atlantic

menhaden, mullets*, pigfish, pompano, spotted sea trout, American shad, sharks, sheepshead, skippers, Atlantic

spadefish, spot*, striped bass, swellfishes (puffers), unclassified, weakfish, whelks/conchs.

Set Gill-Net (Sink): Amberjacks, anglerfish, bluefish*, bonito, butterfish, catfishes, cobia, blue hard crabs,

stone crabs, Atlantic croaker*, black drum, red drum, flounders (fluke), harvestfish, hickory shad, kingfishes (sea

mullet), king mack erel, spanish mack erel, Atlantic menhaden, mullets*, octopus, white perch, pigfish, pompano,

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porgies, sea basses, spotted seatro ut, American shad, sharks, sharks (dogfish)*, sheepshead, skippers, Atlantic

spadefish, spot*, striped bass, tuna, unclassified, weakfish*.

Hook and Line Techiques:

Longline--Bottom : Dolphinfish, groupers, sea basses, sharks*, swordfish*, tuna, wahoo.

Longline--Surface: Cobia, dolphinfish, gropuers, king mack erel, sharks*, swordfish*, triggerfish, tuna*,

wahoo.

Rod-n-Reel: Amberjacks*, bluefish, bonito, cobia, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic cutlassfish, dolphinfish, black

drum, red drum, flounders (fluke), groupers*, grunts, hakes, hogfish, jacks, kingfishes (sea mullet), king mackerel*,

Spanish mack erel, octopus, yellow perch, pigfish, pompano, pogies*, scup, seabasses*, spotted seatro ut, sharks,

snappers*, Atlantic spadefish, spot, swellfishes (puffers), tilefish, triggerfish*, tuna, unclassified, wahoo, weakfish.

Trolling: Amberjacks, bluefish, bonito, cobia, dolphinfish, flounders (fluke), groupers, grunts, jacks, king

mackerel*, Spanish mack erel, porgies, sea basses, sharks, skippers, snappers, swordfish, tilefish, triggerfish, tuna,

unclassified, wahoo, weakfish.

Trawls/Drag Nets

Shrimp Trawl: Rock shrimp, shrimp*, bluefish, butterfish, cobia, hard blue crabs*, peeler blue crabs, soft

blue crabs, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic cutlassfish, black drum, flounders (fluke), harvestfish, kingfishes (sea mullet), king

mack erel, spanish mack erel, pigfish, pompano, spotted seatro ut, sheepshead, Atlantic spadefish, spot, squid,

swellfishes (puffers), triggerfish, unclassified, weakfish, whelks/conchs.

Skimmer Trawl: Shrimp*, hard blue crabs, peeler blue crabs, flounders (fluke), harvestfish, kingfishes (sea

mullet)*, king mack erel, spanish mack erel, pigfish, pompano, spotted seatro ut, sheepshead, Atlantic spadefish, spot*,

squid, swellfishes (puffers), triggerfish, unclassified, weakfish, whelks/conchs.

Flounder trawl: Anglerfish, bluefish, butterfish, Atlantic croaker*, black drum, flounders (fluke)*, flounders

(other), harvestfish, kingfishes (sea mullet), porgies, sea basses, sharks, sheepshead, spot, squid, striped bass,

swellfishes (puffers), unclassified fish, weakfish, whelks/conchs.

Crab trawls : blue crabs*, shrimp, anglerfish, bluefish, catfish, Atlantic croaker, black drum, red drum,

flounders (fluke), kingfishes (sea mullet), spot, swellfishes (puffers), unclassified fish, unclassified shellfish, weakfish,

whelks/conchs

Flyne ts: Anglerfish, bluefish, butterfish, Atlantic croaker*, flounders (fluke), thread herring, kingfishes (sea

mullet), sea basses, spot, squid, striped bass*, swellfishes (puffers), unclassified fish, weakfish*.

Shellfish Rakes, Dredges, and by Hand

By Hand: hard clam*, blue hard crab, stone crab, fluke, oysters*, bay scallop, unclassified shellfish.

Hand tongs: Oyste rs.*

Scallop Dredge--Bay: Bay scallops*, whelks/conchs

Scallop Dredge--Sea: Anglerfish, sea scallops*, sea basses

Scallop Scoop: Bay scallops*

Scallop Trawl: Sea scallops*

Bull rakes: hard clam*, unclassified, whelks/conchs

Hand rakes: hard clam*, flounders (fluke), kingfishes (sea mullet), oyster, bay scallop, sheepshead, spot,

unclassified, whelks/conchs

Oyster dredge: oysters

Other

Gigs (fish spears): bluefish, hard c lam, stone crabs, Atlantic croaker, black drum, red drum, flounders

(fluke)*, mullets, spotted sea trout, sheepshead, spot.

Field Observations and Interviews, Carteret County, July 1999

Morehead City

The commercial fishing industry in Morehead City is centered along the waterfront in

the southeast part of town, prim arily along Evans St. The packing houses and commercial

docks are surrounded by recreational marinas, restaurants, and a few stores that cater to

tourists. There is also a new fishe rmen’s memorial on the waterfro nt. The commercial industry

is dwarfed by the large number of recreational docks in town and in Atlan tic Beach, just south

of Morehead City and access ible via causeway. During our visit there were large signs

advertising a King Mackerel tournament and a Big Rock Mar lin Tourn ame nt.

W e visited and interviewed at Evans Street businesses that seemed direc tly

connected with the fisheries. First was a fish market which depends more on a company in

Washington DC than on local fishers for product (mostly tuna, wahoo and king mack erel).

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Next was a packing and who lesa le company which dea ls in "sushi" grade fish. Our informant

was the secretary/treasurer of the com pany. The ir most prof itable species is flounder. They

also buy and sell other ground fish such as grouper and snapper. They had rece ntly unloaded

sm all quantities of flounder, silver snapper, red snapper, margate, toro and sea bass from

local boats, which were stored in one of the com pany’s refrigerated storerooms. The ir fish are

sold to Japan, and also to sushi restaura nts in North Carolina cities. The informant said the

company works only with independent boats which sometimes migra te from dock to dock, but

which usually come back to the same fish houses. She said that fishing in the area is “very

seaso nal,” which wou ld exp lain the slowness of activity during our visit.

The informant said that while commercial fishing is big in the area, “the industry is

getting depressed here.” She cited regulations as the cause and stated that the “small-timers”

are the ones who are suffering the mos t. She said that she and her husband are trying to

better fishe rmen’s income by getting them to focus more on sushi-grade fish and to learn how

to better preserve fish, by proper chilling and sanitation methods, on the boat after they are

caugh t. This way, even if their catches are smaller, fishermen will get higher prices for sushi-

grade fish, and will also be able to stay in business. She said that, for example, fishermen get

$.25 to .50 more per pound of sushi-grade flounder than they do for regular flounder. She also

said that if their company buys from a particular boat, it usually buys all the fish on that boat

“for the convenience of the fisherm an.” This, however, sometimes makes it hard for the

company to distribute the who le catch because of the over-qu antity of some species or

because of the variable quality of the fish.

According to our inform ant, the company has another packing house in Beaufort;

however, it is going to be shut down. The informant said that they have not yet experienced

land use pressure in Morehead City despite the “major commercialism” that has come to the

area.

A third business visited was a seafood restaurant and fish market on Evans Street,

which appeared to be the major center for retail and who lesa le fish transactions. Our

informant was one of the three owners who is in charge of the fish market and who employ 4-5

others full-time. On the day we spoke to the inform ant, the market had a very good selection

of fish, most of which came from local boats. Our informant stated that July is the slowest

time for fishing in the area. The company does not have its own boats and buys prim arily from

local owner/operators, 13 of which tie up at the company docks. These boats range in size

from 28 to 45 feet. Some of them go to Florida to fish in the winter. The company also

occasionally buys tuna, swordfish, and some tile fish from longliners out of Maryland and New

York.

The informant said that probably more than 50% of the business is wholesale, and

that they send prim arily to Jessup Market in Baltimore, Maryland and to Fulton Fish Market in

New York. They also supply restaura nts in the area. Unlike most other local retail markets,

which close during the winter, this one stays open year round. Its busiest time is April through

Decem ber, and according to our inform ant, “reta il is always good here.” He said that both their

retail and who lesa le income is fairly even ly divided among flounder, grouper, snapper, and

croaker. There is a big market for shrim p as well, but our informant said that prices for them

go up and down quite a bit. The high time, loca lly, for getting shrim p is the summer (Apr il to

October). After the summ er, however, the shrimpers head south. The other species they were

selling when we visited, in July, from local ocean boats (labeled as such) were sea bass, king

macke rel, and wahoo. Flounder, speckled trout, grey trout (weakfish), bluefish, jumping

mullet, hogfish, sea mullet, croaker, and Spanish mackerel were advertised as coming out of

the bay. “Imported” species included tuna, salmon, grouper, mahi mahi, swordfish, kingfish,

trigger, flounder, live lobsters from Maine, and backfin crab.

A fish house and market have been on the site since the 1920s. Our informant said

that the area has not changed that much and that there are no current land use controversies.

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There are clearly a lot of recreational marinas and restaura nts on the waterfro nt, however,

which may or may not be have been there 20 years ago. He said it wou ld be hard to tear

anything down and rebu ild in the area because of municipal red tape and high property values.

He did note that the sushi fish house is relatively new to the area, located where an older fish

market used to be.

W e visited the docks of this business. Our informant was a fisherman who captains a

"bandit boat." There are 10 bandit boats at the Morehead City waterfro nt, and our informant

pointed out their distinguishing features: a set of 3 to 4 motorized hook and line rigs

positioned at the corners of the deck. Each rig is handled by one crew member or by the

captain. Most of the boats are 30’ to 36’, though the biggest is 44’. According to our inform ant,

all of the bandit boats in the area are docked in Morehead City, except for one, which is

docked in Beaufort. He said that 3 of the Morehead City boats are docked at private slips

rather than at the ma in waterfront area. On this particular day about half of the bandit boats

were at the dock because of high winds.

After stating that “the damn government is trying to put us out of business” with

regulations, our informant pointed out that, like rod and reel fishing, bandit fishing “is not

indiscriminate” and has almost no by-catch; “99.5% of the catch is sellable.” This is because

the boats target schools of specific species of fish, mostly groupers and snappers, and use

only bait (squid, Boston macke rel, cigar minnows) and techniques approp riate to those

species.

He says the boats go 30 to 60 miles offshore, to at least 200 feet of water and

sometimes to as much as 750 feet. The boats are usually out for 5 or 6 days at a time.

Smaller boats, however, only go out for 3 or 4 days and the one larger boat is out for up to a

week. In North Carolina waters they are able to catch 4 different types of grouper that range in

weight from 5 to 50 pounds, but they are only able to catch 1 kind of snapper (vermillion),

which comes in at 1 to 5 pounds. He and a lot of the other bandit boat fishermen head as far

south as Key West in the winter, where they are able to catch American red snapper which

weighs anywhere from 6 to 50 pounds. He himself stays in the area for 8 months and sells

prim arily to the same dealer. In the other months, however, he sells to three other fish houses

farther south. This is bas ically a matter of following the fish because, according to our

inform ant, the overall fishing in North Carolina is better than in Florida due to over-fishing in

Florida waters. He said that the prices for grouper and snapper do not vary much, but do

slight ly depending on size, maybe from $2.40 to 2.90/lb. to the boat. The grouper and snapper

apparen tly do not migra te farther north than the Oregon Inlet. He also reels in some porgies,

triggers and wahoos, but said that they are not a ma instay. He does not fish for the sushi

market, though he claim s his fish is sushi-grade.

Our informant is in his early 40s and only began fishing 12 years ago. He had been a

furniture maker in Maryland and engaged in recreational fishing on the side. He said that he

got bored with the furniture making and that and had enjoyed fishing much more. He then

moved to Morehead City and began working on a head boat for $5/hour. He then worked as a

commercial fishing boat crew member before being hired as a captain. He remained a

cap tain until he was able to buy his own boat 4 years ago. “There was a lot to learn to be good

at it.” The boat that he now owns, a T-Beam, is a 22-year-o ld boat that he bought from

someone who was “more or less” retiring. (Note: reflecting a larger pattern of in-migration to

North Carolina from other states, a sizeable percentage of North Carolina’s fishers are not

native to the state, like this person. According to Johnson and Orbach [1996:8], 21% of the

388 fishers sampled were born in other states).

On an average day, the boat will catch $1,000 worth of fish, or $5,000 to $6,000 on

one trip. Last year was not his best year, but two years ago in Florida his boat, with only 3

hands, hauled in $10,000 in three days; this was his best trip ever. Pulling in this amo unt,

however, was unusua l. He said that he grosses $100,000/year and nets about $50,000, but

145

his crewme mbers do not make that much. He also said that captains generally get the same

share as crewme mbers and that there is a share for the owner as well. Therefore

owner/operators get two shares.

Although Morehead City is where he is based for the majo rity of the year, he lives in a

motel and his legal address is in Florida where his parents live. He said that Morehead City is

a very inexpensive place to live; a two-bedroom apartment wou ld probably rent for $320,

which wou ld be less than half of what it wou ld be rented for in Maryland. Still, he said that very

few young people are going into fishing in the area “with the restrictions and everything.” He

said that most of the bandit boat captains and crews are about his age, though a couple of the

captains and 6 or 7 of the crew mem bers are under 30. He also said that it is very difficult to

recruit and retain crewmembers. He himself has had 7 different crew mem bers in the last 3.5

years, but he also said that some boats have had as many as 50 in that time. He said it all

depends on how the cap tain treats the crew.

In the past, there have been some women who have worked as crew mem bers in

Morehead City. However there are not any now. He also said that there are no blacks

working on the commercial boats, but that there is one black licensed head boat cap tain who

works as an auxiliary cap tain on a 100’ head boat.

Our informant said that there is a “large histo ry” of commercial fishing in the area and

that the long- time residen ts are supportive of their work. He did say, however, that the

newcom ers do not realize the extent of what commercial fishermen do and how many people,

besides fishermen, are connected to the indus try. “If they were to get rid of commercial fishing

here, it wou ld affect half the town. Even more in Harker’s Island [see below].” He said that

while the bandit boats work closely together when they are out on the ocean (e.g., helping

each other find fish and assisting when there are breakdowns ), the fishermen mostly go their

separa te ways on land. According to our informant this is because they are not fam ily men,

though on Harker’s Island “it’s a different story.”

Although there is a well-known bar hango ut, at one of the fish houses mentioned

above, one informant said that most people "go their separa te ways" after fishing. However,

Morehead City has a Blessing of the Fleet the first first weekend in October. And the North

Carolina Fisheries Association erected a memorial in Morehead City to fishermen who lost

their lives at sea.

Beaufo rt

The fishing industry in Beaufort is located prim arily along the frontage road to Route

70, though some shrim p boats were docked on the other side of Route 70. On the water, and

along the frontage road, are four fish houses, one marine service, a boat repa ir shop, and a

boat canvas shop.

The first fish house dea ls mostly in shrim p during the summer and croaker and trout

(weakfish) during the winter. The company does not have its own boats, but one of the

owners said there are 5 local boats “we can count on here” that dock at his building and use

either shrimping or sink net gear. He said that one of the boats was going out for mackerel this

summer and the rest were going out for shrimp. The company has 3 full-tim e employees and

1 part- time employee, all of whom live in the county and are originally from there. Two of the

men working on the chum were black. In the summ er, the company sells the shrim p and

mackerel it packs to Baltimore and New York.

The second fish house ma inly dea ls with shrim p in the summer and flounder in the

winter. The day we visited the ma in activity was sorting shrimp, which was being done by 6

black employees. The owne r's son said that his fam ily form erly raised tobacco.

146

The third fish house is owned by a major fishery fam ily in North Carolina. Our

informant was directing dockhands unloading shrim p from a boat out of Atlantic, NC. She said

that the company owns 7 boats, 3 that go for scallops during the summer and flounder during

the winter, while the other 4 do shrimping during the summer and flounder and other fish

during the winter. “The boats have to be able to convert or they wou ld starve to death,”

according to our inform ant. She explained that the shrimpers become draggers by changing

their nets and adding dragger doors. “Everyone here does at least two things.” She said the

company mostly handles shrim p in the summ er, and that the shrim p season will extend from

April to November “if we’re lucky.” The boats start going for flounder in October/November and

continue until the end of February unless the quota is achieved earlier. They will also go for

croakers and trout in the winter.

Much of the com pany's product stays in North Carolina or goes up to Virginia, though

sometimes shrim p is shipped to Canada, “depending on prices and what’s availa ble in other

states.” Our informant said that the company makes more money from flounder and other fish

during the winter than it does from shrim p in the summ er.

The company has 5 or 6 full-tim e dock employees, all of whom are locals. Most of the

boats have 3-man crews plus the captain, and, unlike many other places there has not been

much turnover. For example, one cap tain has worked with them for almost 40 years. She did

say that it has been a little harder for the sea scallop boats to keep crews because scalloping

has been bad for the last 8 or 9 years; apparen tly there are no longer scallops in the

imm ediate area, though there used to be calico scallops. The scallop boats each carry 7

fishermen, and usually go out for 12 days, but sometimes 14, at a time.

She said that the fishermen in the area are able to stay employed through fishing for

10 or 11 months out of the year and they only take off when no fish or shellfish are around to

catch. She feels that commercial fishing is very important to the area: “If we ever got shut

down, it wou ld have a tremendous impact. But some people don ’t see it that way.” She said

that both Morehead City and Beaufort have a Blessing of the Fleet the first weekend in

October and a seafood festival that her company usually participates in.

Our informant talked a little about the sinking of the fishing vessel Josephine while it

was going for flounder in December 1998 and the 4 fishermen who died, whose names wou ld

be added to the memorial in Morehead City.

Other Impressions:

Later that night we saw one of the shrim p boats passing by Beaufort harbor and

heading into the Newport River, pres umably to go shrimping, and the next day we saw 13

shrim p boats working the inland waters of the Neuse River as we were taking the ferry to

Beaufort Cou nty.

On Route 70 in Beaufort, the Carteret Farm Bureau Services has an impressive

outdoor mural showing a fishing scene with the caption: “Helping You Is What W e Do Best,”

highlighting the importance of fishing as well as agriculture to the area.

Bettie/H arker’s Island/Davis/Stacy/Sea Level/Atlantic/Cedar Island

A complex of seven communities is situated northeast of Morehead City/Beaufort in a

sparsely populated section of Carteret Coun ty that has a variety of waterfro nts on North River,

Core Sound, and Pamlico Sound. W e were only able to get to Bettie and Harker’s Island on

the evening of 7/7/99, but talked with people about some of the other places as well.

147

Bettie advertises itself as “Gateway to the Original Down East”. Although an informant

from Morehead City said there are commercial fishing boats scattered in various places within

the town of Bettie, we were unable to see any of them.

Hark er's Island is wide ly known as having a long and important history of fishing. One

Morehead City informant estimated 10 to 15 boats doing gill-net and pound-net fishing and

shrimping from Hark er's Island. Another inform ant, at the island, said there are sink netters,

clammers, shrimpers and crabbers, as well as a packing house. W e saw over 15 sm all fishing

boats at Hark er's Island Harbor, located at Max well and Island Rd., operated by Carteret

Coun ty Harbor Authority. There were also two gill netters moored off the north side of the

island.

In eastern North Carolina, the relatively isolated Stacy/Sea Level/Davis/Atlantic/Cedar

Island area, like areas further inland in Pamlico, Beaufort and Hyde Counties, is thought of as

a world unto itself. However, every cluster of communities has two or three fish houses that

local fishermen can access, according to an inform ant.

Atlan tic has an active fishing com mun ity that mostly shrimps in the summer and

clams in the winter. Some individ uals will also use sink nets in the winter and will go for roe

mullet. A Morehead City informant said there are probably 30 clamm ers in Atlantic, most of

whom use 30’ boats. She stated that, “In Atlantic, that’s all people do – fish and clam.” She

and her fam ily live in Atlantic, which is also where the company she works for has a second

packing house.

Dav is is similar to Atlantic, and inform ants identified a packing house there and

estimated 20 forty-foot boats there. Cedar Island is said to be “...the most extreme end. Tha t’s

where the fishermen are closest to the roots.” Cedar Island fishermen are reported to do

anything and everything they can, from crabbing to shrimping to pound netting to gill netting

and to running sm all trawlers. Although the volume of fish taken in Cedar Island is lower than

in some other areas, it is a constant flow, with many people involved in fishing, boats coming

and going all the time. An informant from nearby Vandem ere said that the lifestyle there as

“more hard-bitten” than it is in the Vandem ere area: “They work hard, some of them, and live

hard,” he said. Cedar Island has a busy, two-man packing house and 3 or 4 docks. Another

com pany, from Vandemere, had a dock on Cedar Island for 2 years but it was too far away to

be managed effectively.

148

Pamlico Area (including Pamlico, Craven and inland counties)

Crabbing is the mainstay of the fisheries of the central part of North Carolina’s

estuarine system, the Pamlico region. Other fisheries, such as fin-fish gill-netting and pound-

netting, tend to be supplemen tary to crabbing. According to Griffith (1996: 37) fishermen in

this area are less flexib le in terms of involvement in diverse fisheries throughout the year.

Con sequently, the major problem appears to have been crowding of crab-fishing grounds.

This problem has been intensified by the recent rise of basket and peeler markets, which

com pete for crabs with shucking houses, and the parallel growth of crab processing as labor

shortages have been handled through increased use of foreign workers. Some processors

have encouraged the growth of part- time crabbing as well as new fleets including some

foreign fishermen. Major social problems identified by Griffith in 1995 included crowding of

pots, part- time fishing and the above changes in processors’ strategies. Principal ecological

problems included perceived overpopulation of striped bass, the effects of oxygen-deficient

“dead water” on the crab fishe ry, and nutrient loading of the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers. The

general “earning and coping strategy” identified by Griffith (1996: 37) was intensive,

specialized crabbing, as well as peeler operations, but as will be seen below, the fisheries are

highly diverse.

Pamlico County Profile (includes Bayboro, Vandemere, Hobucken and Oriental)

Population

Total county population according to the 1990 Census was 11,372, and all of it was classified

rura l. Farm population was only 178. (1997 population was estimated as 11,973; Diaby 1999:

35).

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

Whites numbered 8,362 or 73.5%, blacks 2,951 or 25.9%. Persons of Hisp anic origin of any

race comprised only .5% of the population. Only 96 people were foreign-born, and only 28 of

them were recent immigrants. Percent of the native-born population that was born in North

Carolina was 79.3%. The largest number of ancestries reported, 3,217, were a variety of

“other”. After that, English, United States (or American) and Irish were the largest groups.

Age Structure

The largest age bracket was 25 to 44 years, with 3,182 residents. The next highest was

children 5 to 17 years (1,994). There were 1,912 persons 65 and older, which was 16.8% of

the total.

Hou sehold Composition

Pamlico had an average of 2.49 people per household, with a total of 4,523 households. About

60% of these were households with ma rried-cou ple families, and 12.1 were classified as

“other fam ily, fem ale house holder.” Householders living alone made up 23.3% of total

householders, and about half of these were 65 or over.

Educational Trends

Of the people age 25 and older, 65.9% were high school graduates or higher; 11.6% held a

bachelor degree or higher.

Income

According to the 1989 census, per capita income for the county was $10,665 and the median

household income was $21,060. Of the 11,217 people for whom the poverty status was

determined in 1989, 18.9% were below the poverty level. In 1997, the average fishing income

was $37,220, compared with an average annual wage per worker of $17,404 (Diaby 1999:

35).

Employment

149

Of the 8,960 people older than 16 years of age in Pamlico Cou nty, 57.3% were in the labor

force. Of the people in the labor force, 98.8% were in the civilian labor force, of which 7% were

unemployed. More recent unemployment figures for the county were 4.2% in 1997 and 4.1%

in 1998. The county shows seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998,

unemployment was 6.5% in January, ranged from 2.8% to 4.5% from April through October,

and was back up to 5.9% in January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 4,718 people employed over 16 years of age, 9.1% were in the agriculture, forest, and

fisheries industries sector. 290 were fishers or fishing vessel officers. (In 1997, there were

463 Endorsem ents to Sell issued; Diaby 1999: 35). The largest section of all was precision

production, craft, and repa ir occupations at 16.2%, followed by retail at 15.2%. The next

largest occupations were professional specialty occupations; administrative support

occupations, including cleric al; sales occupations; educational services; and service

occupations, except protective and household. Government workers comprised 24.6% of the

work force, and there were 1,981 self-employed workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

Pamlico Coun ty had 251 ma le and 3 fem ale fishers, according to the 1990 Census. Of the

men, 222 were white and 29 were black. All 3 women were white. There were also 36 white

ma le vessel captains or officers.

Fisheries Profile, Pamlico County, NC

Pamlico Coun ty (pop. 11,372, 1990) had impressive total landings in 1998 of over 10

million pounds, worth over 9 million dollars. Important fishing centers include Bayboro,

Vandemere, Hobucken and Oriental. Fishing takes place in the sounds and tidal rivers as well

as coastal marine waters. Crab-potting, shrim p trawling, and flounder trawling are the major

fisheries. Blue crabs accounted for 62% of the value in 1998, shrim p 13%, and fluke 19%.

Fluke were caught ma inly in trawls ("flounder trawls") but also in crab pots, crab trawls, drift or

runaround gill-nets, set gill nets (float and sink), haul seines, pound nets, shrim p trawls, and

swipe nets. Like other Mid-Atlan tic areas, this is a very diversified fishing region, 46 species

being landed by 19 different techniques or gears (Tables NC-PC1, 2).

150

Tab le NC-PC1: Landings by Gear Type, Pamlico Cou nty, NC, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS. %

By hand 0.0%

Crab pot 72.0%

Crab trawl 7.3%

Eel pot 0.0%

Flounder trawl 8.5%

Flynet 0.0%

Gill net (drift) 0.0%

Gill net (runaround) 2.7%

Gill net set (float) 2.5%

Gill net set (sink) 0.5%

Haul seine 0.0%

Other (including conf.) 1.1%

Oyster dredge 0.1%

Peeler pot 0.0%

Pound net 0.0%

Rod-n-reel 0.0%

Scallop trawl 0.0%

Shrim p trawl 5.3%

Swipe net 0.0%

VALUE %

0.0%

57.2%

5.5%

0.0%

16.6%

0.0%

0.0%

1.7%

3.2%

0.4%

0.0%

1.4%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

0.3%

13.5%

0.0%

Total landings, 1998, rounded: 10,502,300 lbs.

Total value, 1998, rounded: 9,271,800dollars

Tab le NC-PC2: Landings by Major Species, Pamlico Cou nty, NC, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES >2% LBS. %

Unclassified shrim p 4.9%

Crabs, blue, hard 78.5%

Flounders, fluke 9.4%

Mullets 3.0%

Crabs, blue, peeler 0.9%

VALUE %

13.1%

60.1%

19.3%

1.6%

2.1%

Number of species: 46

Field Observations and Interviews, Pamlico County, NC, July 1999

Bayboro

In Pamlico Cou nty, we first passed through Bayboro, but there was little perc eptib le

activity going on on a Thursday morning. At the sm all harbor situated at the head of Bay River

(which flows into Pamlico Sound) we saw two fishing boats. The landside portion of the harbor

is dominated by the buildings of a seafood company (“Crabmea t, Fish, Shrimp”). There

seemed to be some other marine-related buildings in the area, but they were unide ntifiab le

and one was posted with a “For Sale”sign. This was the former site of a sm all seafood

business which now operates out of an old ice plant in Bayboro, where the owner makes and

sells nets and has one or two boats involving in shrimping and flounder fishing. There were a

number of gill nets and other nets lying around the harbor.

Sources in Vandem ere and Hobucken said that one Bayboro company has 3 or 4

trawlers and is only in operation when the boats are fishing in the area, which isn’t often

because they are gone all winter and run up and down the coast.

151

Vande mere

Vandem ere is a sm all rural town situated on the north side of Bay River. There are

two packing houses, but we were told that the smaller one (fresh and frozen seafood, “serving

restaura nts all over North Carolina"), has gone out of business. Nevertheless, there were

several large boats docked there, including two listing Bayboro as their home port.

W e spoke with sons of the owner of the larger fish company in Vandemere, which

currently owns 2 trawlers and in the past has owned as many as 12 boats. A fish house has

been on the site since 1943; the present owner bought it in 1976 – he had had a fish house at

Daw son ’s Creek before that. At Vandem ere there is a core group of 6 independent trawlers

that go shrimping in the summer and who pack at this house. There can be more if the

shrimping is good, but it hasn’t been for the last 5 or 6 years. These boats switch gear in

winter and then mostly go for summer flounder, which lasts for only 4 to 6 weeks because of

the quotas. None of the trawlers they own or work with go after squid, though some of them

used to harvest sea scallops.

There are also a number of smaller boats that bring in crabs and oysters, some of

which also set gill nets. W e were told that 25-30 of them dock at the buildings of this com pany,

and that these boats come from many different places in Pamlico Cou nty. The company owns

a smaller dock in Hobucken which is ma inly used by crabbers (see Hobucken) as well as a

shrim p freezing plant in Grantsboro. It used to have a dock on Cedar Island as well.

At the time of our visit, all of the trawlers were shrimping, mostly off South Carolina

and Georgia. One trawler was fishing for yellowtail flounder off New York. Our source said that

the size of the catches of different species varies from year to year, but usually the ma instays

are shrimp, blue crab and summer flounder. All the summer flounder is caught by trawlers in

the ocean. The trawlers docked in Vandem ere reach the ocean through Beaufort Inlet or

sometimes Oregon Inlet. Gill netters bring in southern flounder from the bays and sound, but

we were told that it is a sm all percentage of the com pany’s overall produc t. The company also

buys southern flounder from pound netters.

Our informant said that crew turnover on the trawlers is a significant problem on

certa in boats. W hile the issue used to be “more person al,” it’s now about economics – if the

cap tain and the boat are not good at bringing in fish, the crew won ’t stay. He said that most of

the trawler crews in the area are loca l, but that the scallop boats have some men from

Hampton, VA, and New Bedford, MA (though there isn’t much scalloping happening in the

area now). Local captains are generally in their 40s or 50s and sometimes older, and most

crew mem bers are much younger, so there is a generation gap. He said there are some

captains who are 25-35 and that they are not nearly as good as the older ones. He also

pointed out that there is a "crack" problem among some of the younger fishermen, in a group

“that floats around” from one dock to another, but that his company refuses to work with them.

Our Vandem ere informant said that his company chooses only to work with “a select few,”

and, even at that, there is always some level of distrust between dealers and fishermen. When

asked about women, he said there are a couple of women in the area who fish occasionally

with their husbands.

This company mostly just packs the catches that come in, but it does do a little

processing of crabs and of flounder (cutting them into fillets). The only thing done to shrim p is

taking off the heads. They used to do a lot of crab picking, but don ’t anymore because it’s hard

to find people loca lly who are willing to do it (see below). All the species they handle are

distributed both fresh and frozen. The market area is New England to the Gulf of Mexico.

They do very little local distribution – just to some North Carolina restaurants, and one truck

goes to the Virgin ia Tidewater and to Ocean City, MD. They send very little to Fulton Fish

Market because the dealers there “cut our tickets.” The company exports some of its fresh

152

flounder for the sushi market, but our informant said that business has been terrib le in the last

3 years.

The company works with a minimum of 15 to 20 employees, but at the time of our

visit had more than 100 since July is its busiest time because of the shrimping. Our source

said that fishing and farming are the only things going on in and around Vandemere, and that

his company used to be a large employer of local people, most of whom were black. But now,

he said, the younger blacks don ’t want to pick crabs or work with shrim p in the packing house

– they have found other jobs or have migrated out of the area. Because of this and related

problems, the company shifted to migrant Mexican labor under the H2B program. Eighty of its

employees this summer are migrants, some on visas and some on green cards; 65 are

women and 15 are men, and most are between 22 and 30 years old, though there are a few

older women and men. Although the company needs some of them year round, the H2B

program is only for 9 months. He also said it’s “a nightmare” to get approval to bring them in.

But the company is now in its 5th year of hiring migrant labor. The company houses the

migra nts in 6 trailers in Grantsboro, where the shrim p freezing plant is located, and in 2 trailers

and a house in Vandemere. Each week, $20 is deducted from each work er’s pay for the

housing; Don said employers “are not allowed to make a prof it off of it.”

There is no bar or hango ut. W e were unable to stay long enough here or in other

communities to learn about other institutions, such as churches and civic service

organizations, through which people involved in fishing interact.

Hobucken

There are two ma in areas where fishing boats are docked in Hobucken. One is on the

intercoastal wate rway, right before the ma in part of town. W e saw a shrimper and two other

boats there. There is another commercial dock area near the center of town, right behind the

Hobucken Marina grill, where there were a lot of pots and some sm all commercial boats. The

inlet itself is lined by mobile homes. There was also a boat yard in town.

One packing house, one of the older fish businesses in the area, dea ls with many of

the sm all gill netters. Another offloads about 10 of the 25 crab boats that tie up there. These

boats also do some gillnetting and oystering.

W e talked brief ly to several people, including an elder ly, very digruntled fishing vessel

owner. He said he’s been fishing since 1956 and used to scallop exc lusive ly, but that he’s

prevented from doing that by over ly strict government regulations. Before getting too angry to

talk to us anymore, he said that he lives in Hobucken and that 90% of the people there are

involved in fishing, but then said that nobody is able to fish out of there anymore because of

government regulations.

W e were also told about a woman in her 70s who fishes out of Hobucken. She has

her own boat and is assisted by a relative.

Hangout: a grill called the Hobucken Marina.

Oriental

Oriental has the only fish house in the area that still does extensive crab picking. – the

company employs about 110 pickers, most of whom are migrant laborers from Mexico. There

is also a seafood company across the harbor. W e did not visit Oriental.

Other Pamlico (Craven and Related Inland Counties)

153

Craven Coun ty (pop. 88,475, 1997), up the Neuse River, had a sm all crab and fluke

fishe ry, over 800,000 lbs. and 630,000 dollars in 1998. Crab pots and float gill-nets

dominated, with a range of techniques, including shrim p and skimmer trawls, trolling, gigs, and

hand rakes. Fluke and mullets were also important within a total of 46 species landed. In the

1990 census, an unusua lly diverse population of fishers was recorded: 41 white men, 17

black men, 12 Asian or Pac ific Islander women as fishers, and 13 white men as captains or

officers. In 1997 168 ETS were issued, and the average fishing income was $11,556,

considerably less than the average annual wage per worker of $24,682 (Diaby 1999: 35).

Wayne and Johnston Counties, far inland on the Neuse River, reported very sm all

landings in 1998.

Wake Cou nty, near Raleigh, had virtua lly no commercial fishing in 1998, although in

the 1990 census 6 white males declared fishing as their occupation in the census.

The sm all amo unts of fish reported in 1998, with rod and reel, trolling, and other

methods, are ocean fishes, including King macke rel, porgies, sea basses, sharks,

and snappers.

Pitt Cou nty, on the Tar River leading to Pamlico River, has a very sm all fishery

(valued less than $30,000 in 1998), dominated by crab-potting. Some gill-net and

trolling and rod-n-reel fishing also take place. In 1990 13 white males were described

as fishers in the census.

Eastern Dare/Outer Banks Region (including Belhaven, in Beaufort County, Swan

Quarter, Engelhard and Ocracoke in Hyde County, and Wanchese and Hatteras in

Dare Coun ty on the Outer Banks).

This large and diverse region is the site of both estuarine and offshore, federal waters

fisheries (Griffith 1996: 42-44). Fishermen of this region often switch between federal and

state waters, and hence they depend on several gears and species through the year.

Involvement in federal waters fisheries means there is greater concern about federal fisheries

management (esp ecia lly summer flounder quotas) as well as competition from other states

including the movement of Florida net fishermen into the region, after the ban on nets in

Florida state waters. Decline in oyster stocks has led to increases in crabbing and netting and

increased pressure and crowding in the Pamlico and Currituck Sounds. The Wanchese

seafood industrial park is a major marketing center for East coast fisheries, and the fleet of

trawlers working out of Wanchese is organized around dealers, whereas elsewhere in the

region more independent owner-operator fishing operations prevail. Slip space is limited in

some areas, and there is concern here as elsewhere that real estate opportunities will replace

commercial fishing space with space for recreation-oriented marinas and condominiums. The

earning and coping strategies tend to be highly flexib le and diverse; there is also some charter

boat fishing.

W e continue with our by-coun ty ana lysis of parts of this region.

Beaufo rt County Profile (includes Belhaven)

Population

Coun ty population acccording to the 1990 Census was 42,283. Females outnumbered males

52.8% to 47.2%. Rural areas claimed 69.3% of the population, urban areas 30.7%. In 1997

the population was estimated at 43,400 (Diaby 1999:35).

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

154

There were 13,194 blacks living in Beaufort, or 31.2% of the population. There were 28,949

whites, representing 68.5% of the residents. There were sm all numbers of Asians, American

Indians and other races, and 197 persons of Hisp anic origin of any race. The foreign-born

population numbered only 254. Of the native-born population of 42,029, 82.9% were born in

North Carolina. The largest declared ancestry was English (8,143); the second largest was

United States or American (6,352). “Other” numbered 13,986.

Age Structure

Individ uals in the 25 to 44 age group made up 29.3% of the population. The next largest group

was 5- to 17-year-olds, at 19.4%. Those 65 or older comprised 14.9% of the population.

Hou sehold Composition

There were 16,157 households in the county, with an average of 2.58 persons per household.

Fam ily households comprised 73.3% of the total, and, of those, 77.2% housed married-cou ple

families. Of the 3,915 householders living alone, 50% were 65 or over.

Of the 16,157 occupied housing units, 74.1% were owner occupied and 25.9% renter-

occupied. Of the 3,441 vacant housing units (comprising 17.6% of all housing units), 55.2%, or

1,900 units, were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The homeowner vacancy rate

was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 8%.

Median value of owner-occupied housing units was $52,600. Median rent was $191. One -unit

detached homes numbered 12,832, and mobile homes and trailers totaled 5,011.

Educational Trends

People aged 25 and over with a high school or higher diploma comprised 65.9% of the

county’s population. Only 10.8% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

Per capita income in 1989 was $10,722. Median household income stood at $21,738, while

median fam ily income was $26,010. Of the 41,676 persons for whom poverty status was

determined, 8,130, or 19.5%, were below poverty level. Of the 5,950 persons 65 years and

older for whom poverty status was determined, 29.1% were below poverty level. Of the

families with related children under 18 years, 21.6% were below, and for fem ale householders

with related children under 18, 54.4% were below. In 1997 the average fishing income was

$24,462, compared with an annual average wage per worker of $22,102 (Diaby 1999: 35).

Employment

Of the 32,618 persons 16 years and older, 20,475 were in the labor force, and 20,426 of those

were civilians. Of the civilians, 5.4% were unemployed in 1989, but more recent figures show

that unemployment in the county has been on the rise. In 1997, the annual rate was 7% and,

in 1998, 7.8%. In 1999, unemployment was above 8% in January and July. The county shows

mon th by mon th variations, some of them large, but these do not seem to be seasonal in

nature.

Employment Industries

Agriculture, forestry and fisheries industries employed 5.8% of workers (1,108) aged 16 or

over. 147 were in the fisheries. (In 1997 626 ETS were issued; Diaby 1999: 35). The largest

sector, finance/insurance/real estate, employed 3,275, or 17.1%, of the work force.

Manufacturing of non-durable goods was second, with 3,127 workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

The Census Bureau listed two white ma le captains or officers of fishing vess els in Beaufort

Coun ty plus a total of 145 fishers. Of the ma le fishers, two were black and the rest white. All of

155

the women were white.

Fisheries Profile, Beaufo rt County, NC

Beaufort Coun ty (pop. 42,283, 1990) is an important fishing county, accounting for

over 10 million lbs. and 8 million dollars in 1998 (Tables NC-BC1 ,2). Bellhaven is the principal

fishing port. Blue crabs, caught with pots, trawls, trotlines, and other methods, comprise

almost all of the landings and value. Fluke made up over 3% of the value. Shrim p is also

important although not shown below because of con fiden tiality.

Tab le NC-BC1: Landings by Gear-Type, Beaufort Cou nty, NC, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS. % VALUE %

Crab pot 85.6% 82.9%

Crab trawl 10.0% 10.0%

Eel pot 0.1% 0.2%

Fish pot 0.0% 0.0%

Flounder trawl 0.0% 0.0%

Fyke net 0.0% 0.0%

Gigs 0.0% 0.0%

Gill net (runaround) 0.0% 0.0%

Gill net set (float) 1.4% 1.1%

Gill net set (sink) 1.2% 1.9%

Other (including conf.) 1.5% 3.7%

Oyster dredge 0.0% 0.0%

Peeler pot 0.0% 0.0%

Pound net 0.0% 0.0%

Rod-n-reel 0.0% 0.0%

Shrim p trawl 0.1% 0.1%

Trolling 0.0% 0.0%

Trotline 0.0% 0.0%

Total landings, rounded, 1998: 10,147,000 lbs.

Total value, rounded,1998: 8,035,100 dollars

Tab le NC-BC2: Landings by Major Species, Beaufort Cou nty, NC, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES >2% LBS. % VALUE %

Crabs, blue, hard 94.4% 89.8%

Flounders, fluke 1.4% 3.1%

Other (including conf.) 1.5% 3.7%

Number of species: 38

Field Observations, Belhaven, NC, July 1999

Belhaven

On the way to Belhaven, we passed by the Cee Bee Marina on the Pungo River,

which is “a home sites mar ina,” one of the many recreational marinas scattered all over the

eastern counties of North Carolina.

Belhaven is near the head of the Pungo River, which flows into the Pamlico River and

then into Pamlico Sound. There are two places where we saw commercial boats: on Water St.

156

near the center of town and on Pantego St. a little removed from the center. At the latter, we

talked to a woman at a crab com pany, who said that there used to be a third dock in town, but

it had closed awh ile ago.

Belhaven is a mixture of middle-class and affluent homes, farming, fishing and other

sm all town industries, and a number of recreational marinas with many large boats. Belhaven

is where we were told there wou ld be many pleasure yachts (there were) and some trawlers,

but we didn’t see many trawlers when we were there – only a shrimper in the town center dock

area; another vess els at the Cox Railw ays and Marina in the same area (and we were n’t sure

it was an active boat); and another at a crab company (there were a number of other smaller

boats docked there as well).

Hyde County Profile (includes Swan Quarter, Engelhard and Ocracoke)

Population

The population of Hyde Coun ty is tiny – there were only 5,411 people when the 1990 Census

was taken. The entire county was classified as rura l, but farm population comprised only

7.7% of the total. The estimated 1997 population was 5,280 (Diaby 1999: 35).

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

The ma in racial groups in the county were white (66.5%) and black (33%). Those claiming

Hisp anic origin of any race made up only .8% of residents. Only 43 people were born in

countries outside the US. Of the native population, 79% had been born in North Carolina.

People of English and Irish descent were most prevalen t, making up 29.3% of reported

ancestries, though the combined category of “other ancestries” accounted for 34.8% of the

total.

Age Structure

The two largest age categories in the county were 25 to 44 years (1,554) and 5 to 17 years

(1,016). There were 899 persons in the 65 years and older brack et, or 16.6% of the total.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 2,094 households in Hyde Cou nty, 1,533 were fam ily households, and, of those, 75.1%

were ma rried-cou ple households, and 20.9% were headed by sing le females. There were 516

householders living alone, a little more than half of whom were 65 or older, and the person per

household average was 2.57.

Of the county’s 2,905 total housing units, 27.9% were vacan t. Seasonal, recreational or

occasional use accounted for 57.1% of these. The renter vacancy rate was 24.6 as compared

to the homeowner rate of only 2.1. Of the 2,094 occupied units, 23% were rentals. Median

value of owner-occupied units was $43,700, and median contract rent was only $158.

Educational Trends

Educational attainment in the county is relatively low: 60% of persons 25 years and over had a

high school diploma in 1989, and only 7.7% were graduated from college.

Income

Per capita income was very low: $9,434. Median household income and fam ily income

followed suite at $17,665 and $19,929, resp ective ly. Of the 5,559 persons for whom poverty

status was determined, 24% were below poverty level. Of the 186 households with a fem ale

head and related children under 18 years, 75.8% were in pove rty. The average fishing income

in 1997 was $37,693, compared with an average annual wage per worker of $17,476 (Diaby

1999: 35).

Employment

157

The county had 2,392 people 16 or over in the labor force (and 1,819 people who weren’t). Of

those in the civilian labor force, 200, or 8%, were unemployed. Most of these (71%) were

women. In recent years, the unemployment rate has improved somewhat – it was 6.9% in

1997 and 7% in 1998. Hyde Coun ty experiences wide fluctuations in the unemployment rate

over the course of a year. For example, in 1998 it was over 15% in January and February and

at or below 4% from May through October.

Employment Industries

Of the 2,160 employed workers 16 years and older, the greatest number, 454 or 21%, were

engaged in farming, forestry and fishing occupations. (Note that 418 people live on farms,

though these are people of all ages and employment status). 242 were fishers. (In 1997 397

ETS were issued; Diaby 1999: 35). The next most prevalent occupations were precision

production, craft and repair, administrative support and sales. 18.6% of all workers were self-

employed.

The perception we found, in interviews, was this: "If you're not a farmer or fisherman, you work

for the courthouse or governmen t."

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

The Census Bureau listed no captains or officers of fishing vess els living in Hyde Coun ty in

1989. It did, however, count 242 fishers, of whom 234 were ma le and 8 female. All of the

women were white as were 196 of the men. The other 38 men were black.

Fisheries Profile, Hyde County, NC

Hyde Coun ty (pop. 5,411 in 1990) although sm all in population (reported ly there is

only one traffic light in the county) is the third largest fishing county of North Carolina, with total

landings over 16 million lbs. and value over 10 million dollars in 1998 (Tables NC-HC 1,2).

Fishing centers include Swan Quarter, Engelhard and Ocracoke. Blue crabs and fluke are the

two most important species in terms of value; dogfish, and Atlan tic croaker are also significan t,

and 56 other species are caugh t. Gears used are the full array of estuarine and inshore

techniques, partic ularly crab pots and trawls, sink and float set gill nets, shrim p trawls, pound

nets, and flounder trawls.

158

Tab le NC-HC1: Landings by Gear Type, Hyde Cou nty, NC, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS. % VALUE %

By hand 0.0% 0.0%

Cast net 0.0% 0.0%

Crab pot 63.0% 58.4%

Crab trawl 4.4% 3.8%

Fish pot 0.0% 0.0%

Flounders trawl 1.9% 5.0%

Fly net 0.3% 0.6%

Gill net (runaround) 0.4% 0.3%

Gill net set (float) 2.2% 2.9%

Gill net set (sink) 17.8% 12.5%

Haul seine 0.0% 0.0%

Longline bottom 0.0% 0.0%

Longline shark 0.0% 0.0%

Other (including conf.) 5.7% 3.2%

Oyster dredge 0.1% 0.9%

Peeler pot 0.0% 0.0%

Pound net 1.5% 3.6%

Rakes bull 0.0% 0.0%

Rakes hand 0.0% 0.0%

Rod-n-reel 0.0% 0.0%

Shrim p trawl 2.5% 8.5%

Swipe net 0.0% 0.0%

Tongs, hand 0.0% 0.0%

Trolling 0.2% 0.4%

Total landings, rounded, 1998: 16,079,800 lbs.

Total value, rounded,1998: 10,921,600 dollars

Tab le NC-HC2: Landings by Major Species, Hyde Cou nty, NC, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES >2% LBS. % VALUE %

Unclassified shrim p 2.3% 8.2%

Crabs, blue, hard 66.2% 58.5%

Croaker, Atlan tic 8.3% 4.1%

Flounder, fluke 5.9% 16.0%

Other (including conf.) 5.7% 3.2%

Sharks, dogfish 3.8% 0.8%

Number of species: 62

159

Field Observations and Interviews, Hyde County, NC, July 1999

Swan Quarter

Swan Quarter in Hyde Coun ty had the most visible fisheries activity in any of the

inland communities we visited. When we first got into the outskirts of town, we saw one

commercial boat docked off Route 45, but then got to Landing Road, where there were at

least 50 commercial fishing boats and another 15 recreational boats by mid-afternoon. Many

of the shrimpers were in while we were there. However, other boats were out, including mu lti-

species trawler and gill-net operations for spiny dogfish, monkfish, bluefish, and Spanish

macke rel. The owner of one of the major seafood companies told us that there were 80 to 90

sm all boats (25-35 feet) in Swan Quarter, and 12 trawlers larger than 45 feet. The trawlers

shrim p and catch fish as by-catch. Some retool for crab. Most do not fish in the ocean.

There are also a few pound netters and 3 to 5 gillnetters in the com munity. W e were also told

that there is competition between commercial and recreational fishers, but it is manageable:

"there 's always somebody there to help when you need it."

In Swan Quarter are a number of fish houses and a marine supply store, mostly at

what is known as Pamlico Beach. One fish house specializes in soft she ll crabs, which it

wholesales, prim arily to Fulton Fish Market in NY. It employs 11 full time and 3 part time

during their peak times. The owner said they work from April through Septemb er. In the

winter, some oyster, some crew for other boats and some paint houses. Most stay in the

com mun ity and live off what they made during the summ er. The owner also said that 6 to 8

women run their own sm all crab boats.

The other fish houses are more diversified. The second dock is ma inly a shrim p and

crab dock; there are two gillnetters who catch a wide variety of species. At the time of our visit

focus was on "speckled trout" (a kind of weakfish or squeateaque), which was experiencing

the best run in years. The fish that is caught and sold in this area are prim arily flounder and

speckled trout. Another company does oysters, shrim p and a variety of fish. A third does

oysters, shrimp, soft she ll crab and fish. Most of the houses cater prim arily to the shrimpers,

who tend to specialize rather than combine shrimping with flounder fishing, etc.: "Most

shrimpers don't retool for flounder in this area because of the cost of retooling." According to

another inform ant, fish are caught ma inly as by-catch. Some retool in order to trawl for crab,

but most don't go out in the ocean. 99% of these shrimpers live in the area, according to a

local inform ant. The crews are also mostly loca l. There were only two "migrant workers" that

he cou ld think of in the area.

Engelh ard

W e did not visit Engelhard, although we talked with a local fisherman on the

telephone. It is similar to Swan Quarter: in July 1999 a fisherman from Swan Quarter said

that the fishermen of Engelhard, which is further to the east/no rtheast, "get more out of the

ocean than we do, but right now they're gettin' the same thing we are." Engelhard, a

substantial port not far from Oregon Inlet, services both ocean-going and sound fishermen.

Four fish houses purchase shrimp, fish, and crabs, with varying specialties. Some own their

own wood- and steel-hulled trawlers. Problems with Oregon Inlet lead some to use Virgin ia

ports during the busy winter trawl fishe ry.

At times the creek at Engelhard is filled with shrim p draggers, local and from the

larger area, as far as Geo rgia and Florida. An informant who fishes and crabs in the sound

said that when the shrimping is good, in the summer at night it can "look like a city on the

sound ." Although some people specialize in crab-potting, the more usual pattern is to

combine different fisheries. Before oysters disappeared from Pamlico Sound, the winter

oyster fishery was the ma instay, and in the summ ers people went crabbing or fishing. Now,

someone might be crab-potting in the summ er, switch over to peeler pots for peeler crabs,

160

switch back again, do some sink-netting (gill-netting) in the winter, and perhaps flounder gill-

netting in the fall (the flounder gill-net is different from a sink net).

Engelhard is very distant from coastal developmen t, and therefore there are few

conflicts with speedboaters, sailors, and recreational fishermen compared with other fishing

grounds on Pamlico Sound. A recent issue, according to a fisherman from Engelhard, is the

attempt to limit the numbers of crab pots used, following a five-plus year moratorium on crab

licenses. Engelhard and some other crabbers have objected because, they sugge st, the

problem is mostly one of water use conflict with boaters, and that it therefore should be

handled at more local levels. Apparen tly the state has rece ntly established area councils to

deal with problems like this. Another recent, and mounting, issue concerning Engelhard and

other North Carolina fishermen is the question of the mor tality of seabirds and turtles in gill-

nets. Gill-netters may have to carry observers from time to time as part of research on the

question.

Ocracoke

Ocracoke is a pound-net fishing center. One person interviewed fishes 9 pound -nets

and estimated that others in the area fish as few as 4 or 5 and as many as 18 to 20. The

pound -nets used in Pamlico Sound are mostly for croaker, butterfish, menhaden, weakfish,

and Spanish macke rel. In October and November many on Ocracoke gillnet for roe mullet.

Crabbing is also very important. One of the two major packing houses in Ocracoke is a crab

com pany. Three-quarters of the crabbers offload with this com pany.

A second major business in Ocracoke was built in 1974-75 and purchased by its

present owner in 1982. The owner, our inform ant, was a commercial fisherman and still uses

trapnets for flounder in the fall. Once he had a 72 ft. steel hull trawler but now runs a 25 ft.

Parker. He traces his roots in fishing to the mid 1700s, on his mo ther's side, in Ocracoke, and

is in the process of turning the business over to his son. Cur rently he fishes 8 pound -nets and

his son fishes 18.

The number of boats that pack out of this business varies seasonally and ranges from

4/5 per day to 30/40 per day. These are all smaller boats (20-28 feet). There is one trawler on

Ocracoke island, but it belongs to a retired fisherman and rare ly goes out.

All but one of the fishers who pack at this business live on the island. They live all

over town and are well integrated into village activities. When the owner of this business

bought the place in 1982, he said there were no fishers. By 1985 there were 53 crabbers.

Now the island has only 9 or 10 crabbers. He said that "fishing is a young man's game. It's

not an old man's game. It's too much hard work!" He believes that the decline in the number

of fishers is in part generatio nal: young people are choosing other options that require less

work with more steady incomes. But he feels that even those currently fishing have gotten

lazy with the increasing price of fish. They don't have to work as hard to make decent money.

But those who want to make good money still have to fish as often as possible. He also

believes that it is a difficult business to get into because of the high cost of gear. Every fisher

now (par ticula rly with the restrictions caused by regulations) has to be as diverse as possible.

They have to retool regu larly. Pound nets cost anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 each,

depending on whether they are for shallow or deep water use. Crab pots cost at least $20

each; crabbers on the island have anywhere from 300-500 pots each (which are sm all

numbers compared to what we have seen elsewhere).

This informant fears that if a hurricane comes in early October or late Septemb er,

most of the Ocracoke fishers wou ld be run out of business. 40-50% of their annual gross is

done in that time. Because so many are dependent on gear that remains in the water

(pound nets and pots), few wou ld be able to afford to replace all their gear at once. Most in

Ocracoke had accumulated gear over time; they increased their fishing assets incre mentally.

161

The 1985 hurricane Glor ia destroyed many. Most fishers here don't know how to make their

own nets; they cou ld save thousands by making their own nets and weights (which is what he

and his son do).

The annual round was described to us as follows: February to May, the fishers in

Ocracoke gillnet in the ocean. There's limited gillnetting in the Sound for species like speckled

trout and macke rel. They put the summer (lighter, shallower) pound nets out in late May/early

June for what our source called "seine net fish," or the mid-level fish. It takes one person to

set and harvest these nets. The y'll fish these pound nets until Augus t. The fall pound nets put

out in August have larger mesh (4/5 inch) and take at least two or three people to set and

harves t. They fear the loss of dogfish with the new regulations; dogfish helped them a lot in

the winter. Roe mullet brings them a good income in the fall. Mullet goes from $.50/lb. in the

summer to $1.50/lb for fall roe mullet. But it is the combination of summer and southern

flounder that carries the business.

Our informant says there is a big difference between the full time and the part time

fishers. There are 30-40 boats in Ocracoke. Most of these poundnet and gill net for mullet at

the same time. Crew varies seasonally and by gear. Three to four crew mem bers are crew

used when poundnetting; only one crew used when gillnetting for mullet.

Good fishers are grossing in excess of $100,000. Startup costs are very expensive;

maintenance costs are not as high. The gear is expensive to buy, but once you have it paid

off, you can make good money. But the ones who are making this kind of money are the ones

who are out there fishing consistently, day in and day out. Most do not put in that kind of effort.

"Guys don't want to work for $200 a day. The y'll wait until fishing is good. The guy who wants

to make big money fishing must fish consis tently."

Our Ocracoke source believes that young people who do not go to college are taking

up more attractive jobs on the island. The minimum wage is about $8/hr. What they wou ld be

missing, he believes, is "the independence found in fishing. You can be away from

telephones and computers. No one knows how relaxing it is to be part of the environm ent.

You become part of mother nature. You can predict the weather by feel. You get a feel for

fish patterns ."

When asked about the ethn ic make up of the local captains and crew, he said that

there were "only two Mexicans working on the .... docks [of his com pany]." He said the crab

picking houses have had to go to Mexicans because "Mexicans have a great work ethic" (see

Griffith 1996, 2000 for changes in the labor force).

Our informant cou ld think of one woman who fishes on Ocracoke. She fishes during

the flounder run. She also gillnets. She hook and lines for tuna, macke rel, and she works at a

local restaurant in the summ er.

All of the produc ts sold at this com pany's retail market come from the local area

(Morehead City to W anchese). The only thing brought in are sea scallops. The company

does not pack crab; they send their crabs to a related company in Orient for picking.

According to the owner of one of the major Okracoke seafood companies, com mun ity

support for the fisheries is strong: "Maybe the treehuggers want us out, but the com mun ity

suppo rts us." There are approxim ately 700 permanent residen ts on the island. Comm ercial

fishing is an attraction for the tourists. The business owner allows them to come in and see

the commercial packing. He uses the opportu nity to educa te them on what commercial

fishers do. He used to be on the state's Marine Fisheries Cou ncil and currently reviews grants

for the fin fish advisory committee. He does a lot of pub lic relations work such as speaking to

a large group of teachers from local schools to educa te them on the commercial fishing

indus try. His company also donates fish for local fish fries.

162

One of the people we interviewed complained about “too much politics” in fisheries

management and expressed the need for greater industry initiative: "Some hard decisions

need to be made and a couple of powerful people in the industry are fighting too hard. The

state's gonna come down hard on gear regulations because we don't do it ourselves. W e

need to determine what our needs are and limit ourselves. If we don't give a little, the Coastal

Conservation Association will have everything stopped." One of the statistics he complained

about was the measurement of netting. According to this gentleman, regulations are made on

the total length of netting that a fisher fishes, regardless of whether all of their netting is in the

water at the same time. He wants to see this regulation changed.

April to November is the heavy tourist season, and during that time the 6 to 8 charter

boats that operate out of Ocracoke harbor are in business. W e were told that there is not

much tension between the commercial or recreational fishers here, compared with conflicts

within recreational interests.

Ocracoke used to have a crab festival in the spring but it was stopped due to

"liability." The cost of insurance was too high for the sponsors.

Dare County Profile (includes Hatteras, Wanchese and Man n’s Harbor)

Population

According to the 1990 census, Dare Coun ty had a total population of 22,746. Rural population

was 81.4%, although less than 1% lived on farms. The estimated 1997 population was 27,394

(Diaby 1999: 35).

Racial and Ethn ic Composition

In Dare Coun ty about 95.7% of the population was white. The next largest racial group was

black, at 3.6% followed by Hisp anic origin, of any race, at almost 1%. There were sm all

numbers of American Indians, Asian, and other races. Of the population in Dare Cou nty,

98.7% was native 41.2% born in North Carolina. The most prevalent ancestries reported were

Dutch (6,667 people) and German (4,459 people).

Age Structure

The 25 to 44 year-old age group was the largest, at 8,255 people or 36.3%. Individ uals under

18 years old comprised 22.4% of the population and individ uals age 65 or older comprised

12.5%.

Hou sehold Composition

Of the 9,349 households in Dare Cou nty, 68.7% were fam ily households. Of the fam ily

households, 85.6% were married couples and 10.6% were headed by sing le women. An

average of 2.41 people were in each household, but 24.2% lived alone.

Of the 9,349 households, 28.9% were renter occupied. There were 12,218 vacant housing

units in the county, 6,415 of which were for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The

homeowner vacancy rate was 6.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 58.0%. The median

value of owner-occupied housing units was $108,100 in 1990 and median rent was $416.00.

One unit detached housing comprised 74.2% of all housing units and mobile homes and

trailers 10.9%.

Educational Trends

In Dare Cou nty, of people age 25 years and over, 81.0% were high school graduates or

higher; 21.4% held a bachelor ’s degree or higher.

Income

163

According to the 1989 census, per capita income for the county was $15,107 and median

household income was $29,322. Of the 22,536 people for whom poverty status was

determined in 1989, 1,861 people or 8.3% were below the poverty line. In 1997, the average

fishing income was $29,296, considerably higher than the average annual wage per worker of

$17,989 (Diaby 1999: 35).

Employment

Of the 18,189 people age 16 years or older in Dare Cou nty, 71% were in the labor force. Of

these, 99.2% were in the civilian labor force, of which 4.5% were unemployed. More recent

unemployment figures for the county were 5.4% in 1997 and 5.6% in 1998. The county shows

seasonal shifts in unem ployme nt. For example, in 1998, unemployment was 17.6% in

January, ranged from 1.3% to 3.5% from April through October, and was back to 14.6% in

January of 1999.

Employment Industries

Of the 12,199 employed people age 16 and older, 653 or 5.4% were in the agric ultura l,

forestry, and fisheries industries sectors. 470 were in fisheries. (In 1997, 1,051 ETS were

issued). The largest sector of all was retail, at 24.4%, followed by sales occupations at 16.8%.

The next largest occupations were precision production, craft, and repa ir occupations;

construction; executive, administrative, and managerial occupations; service occupations,

except protective and household; and administrative support occupations, including cleric al.

Government workers comprised 15.7% of the work force, and there were 1,981 self-employed

workers.

Racial and Gender Composition of the Fishing Industry

There were 30 white ma le vessel captains or officers living in Dare Cou nty, according to the

Census Bureau. There were also 391 ma le and 49 fem ale fishers, all of whom were white.

164

Fisheries Profile, Dare County, NC

Dare Coun ty (pop. 22,746, 1990) saw over 36.6 million pounds and 23.5 million

dollars from fish and shellfish (and turtle) landings in 1998, the second highest county in the

state in terms of pounds and first in terms of dollars (Tables NC-DC 1,2). Fishing centers

include Wanchese, Hatteras, and Mann's Harbor. Fluke (15%) was second to crabs (40%) in

terms of value, but a much wider range of produc ts were significant than in other North

Carolina counties, because of the importance of ocean as well as estuarine fisheries. These

included bluefish, dogfish, squid, weakfish, anglerfish, king macke rel, sharks, and tuna. The

fisheries range from estuarine fisheries (crab-pots, pound-nets, turtle pots, fyke nets, etc.) to

offshore longlining.

Tab le NC-DC1: Landings by Gear Type, Dare Cou nty, NC, 1998

GEAR TYPE LBS. % VALUE %

Beach seine 1.5% 1.3%

By hand 0.0% 0.0%

Cast net 0.1% 0.0%

Crab pot 30.6% 33.0%

Crab trawl 0.6% 0.5%

Eel pot 0.0% 0.1%

Fish pot 0.1% 0.2%

Flounder trawl 3.3% 7.5%

Flynet 13.2% 7.7%

Fyke net 0.0% 0.0%

Gigs 0.0% 0.0%

Gill net (runaround) 1.0% 1.0%

Gill net set (float) 0.7% 0.8%

Gill net set (sink) 36.4% 22.5%

Haul seine 0.7% 0.5%

Longline bottom 0.0% 0.0%

Longline shark 1.5% 0.8%

Longline surface 2.7% 5.8%

Other (including conf.) 0.6% 0.4%

Oyster dredge 0.0% 0.0%

Peeler pot 1.1% 5.6%

Pound net 2.1% 3.4%

Rakes bull 0.0% 0.0%

Rakes hand 0.0% 0.0%

Rod-n-reel 0.6% 1.4%

Shrim p trawl 0.4% 1.2%

Trolling 2.8% 6.1%

Tur tle pot 0.0% 0.0%

Total landings, rounded, 1998: 36,625,800 lbs.

Total value, rounded, 1998: 23,511,500 dollars

165

Tab le NC-DC2: Landings by Major Species, Dare Cou nty, NC, 1998

MAJOR SPECIES >2% LBS. % VALUE %

Anglerfish (goosefish) 1.8% 1.9%

Bluefish 6.4% 2.6%

Crabs, blue, hard 30.1% 27.8%

Croaker, atlan tic 18.9% 9.4%

Flounders, fluke 5.2% 15.0%

Mac kere l, king 2.0% 4.7%

Sharks 2.7% 1.4%

Sharks, dogfish 10.9% 2.3%

Squ id 2.4% 2.0%

Tuna 2.6% 5.2%

Weakfish (seatrou t, grey) 4.7% 3.9%

Crabs, blue peeler 0.7% 2.2%

Crabs, blue, soft 1.6% 9.2%

Number of species: 69

Field Observations and Interviews, Dare County, NC, Summer 1998, July 1999

Hatteras

Hatteras and Its Fishery

(Note: This part is based on field research done by Doug Wilson in 1998 for the High ly

Migratory Species social impact asses sme nt, Wilson and McCay 1998).

Hatteras Village is a rural com mun ity at the southern end of Hatteras Island on North

Caro lina's Outer Banks, part of Hatteras Tow nsh ip (pop. 2,675 in 1990). Hatteras Island is the

“clas sic example” of a dynamic barrier island, which is bordered by the Atlan tic on the east and

Pamlico Sound on the west. Noted for it’s vast marine resources, the area is also an important

point of departure for marine vessels, and has histo rically been considered a strategic location

on the coast of North America during war.

Geo graphic isolation adds to the local character of Hatteras. Resp onden ts said that it

is a place where people feel safe. Some people leave their houses unlocked. It feels safer

because it is an isolated island com munity. A ferry leaves Hatteras to go to neighboring

Ocracoke Island. Usage of the ferry is very in the summer when you can bet get cars backed

up for a half a mile . The village is quite and insular and "made up of a lot of people who came

here to get away from som ething."

In the 18th cen tury, Hatteras established itself as a seaport com munity, where

activities included whaling and exporting/ importing. However, due to the dynamics of the

barrier island geography, Hatteras Inlet was closed in 1764, only to be opened up aga in during

a large storm in 1846. Since W orld W ar II the economy of the Hatteras com mun ity has

depended on charter and commercial fishing as the major sources of local income; tourism

also serves as an important econom ic activit y.

Seasonal variation in the local economy of Hatteras is due to the presence of three

“seasons”. In the spring, revenue begins to pick up during weekend and holiday tourism; it is

during this period of time (Apr il to May) that approxim ately 30 boats from the commercial fleet

become active in charter fishing. The second season, approxim ately June through Augus t,

begins when schools let out for the year and fam ily vacations are frequent. The third “season”

is the fall, when fishing, surfing and windsurfing are the dominant activities.

166

In Hatteras, 57% of employees are private for prof it wage and salary workers.

Tourism and recreation are major industries in Hatteras in terms of emp loymen t. Comm ercial

fishing is also a major occupation on Hatteras Island, where there are approxim ately 500 to

600 part and full time commercial fishermen; recreational fishing is a source of seasonal

emp loymen t. According to the 1990 Census, twenty-one percent of employed persons work

for the local (8%), state (7%) or federal (6%) governmen t; these pub lic sector jobs include

ferry workers. Self-employed workers make up 16% of the employed work force.

When combined, managerial, profess ional, technician, and administrative jobs

account for nearly half of the occupations reported in the 1990 Census. Farming, forestry and

fishing jobs are held by 6% of those employed in Hatteras.

Fishing Related Businesses

In Hatteras there are five seafood wholesalers and one retail market; there are three

marinas. Businesses in surrounding communities such as Manteo and Buxton also add to the

marine econom y. Hatteras Village is almost totally dependent on fishing. W hile non-fishing

tourists, especia lly windsurfers, are attracted to beaches elsewhere on the island, Hatteras

Village's own beaches are less appealing. Touris ts come to Hatteras because they want to

fish. Our oldest respondent (in 1998) told us that when he was growing up the only thing to do

was fish. He remem bers one morning, fifty years ago, counting some 260 boats going out of

the harbor. They were gillneting for trout and croakers and "caught a lot more fish than is being

caught now." The recreational and charter fishing indus try's history is just as proud. The wall of

one charter boat office is covered with captioned pictures displaying the history of the

Albatross Fleet. In 1937, the four sons of a commercial fisherman went into the charter

business. The ir first sailfish was caught in 1940. Tarpon and dolph in began in 1940. They

hired a publicist to spread the word about big game fishing in Hatteras. They caught their first

ma rlin in 1951. In 1952, the first blue ma rlin was caught by a lady. In 1962, The Albatross III

caught a world record, 810 lb blue marlin. The headline on a yellowing copy of a 1958 New

York City newspaper article proc laims the shocking news of an "Angler Deliberate ly Releasing

a Blue Marlin!" (Hurley 1958). The angler was Jack Cleveland of Greenwich CT fishing on the

Albatross.

Marinas and Charters

As we did for Point Pleasant/Brielle, New Jers ey, we offer some deta il on the sports-

fishing component of Hatteras, which is otherwise not treated in this study. It is based on field

research done in 1998 by Douglas Wilson (Wilson and McCay 1998).

A charter boat cap tain related in 1998 that newcom ers are amazed at how good the

fishing is. Ditton et al. (1998) did a survey of both private and charter boat anglers in Hatteras

in the winter of 1997. The ir results support the capta in's assertion. They found that of 644

anglers, 46 percent agreed with the statement "I caught more fish than I expected on this trip"

and 42 percent agreed that they "cou ld not imaging a better fishing trip." The winter season is

bluef in tuna. In early spring they get puppy drum on the beach, and offshore yellowfin tuna,

dolphin, wahoo and marlin. Sailfish come in June. In the summer with the warm water they get

"all fish": flounder, cobia, speckled trout, drum, wahoo, ma rlin and sailfish. In the fall are

flounders, king mackerel and rockfish.

The marinas are 100 percent fishing related. Over the course of the year most people

come to fish with their boats, both trailer boats and over water boats. A marina owner

estimates that half of the parties are all men and about half families. The families go to the

beach, the shops, and amu sem ents such as go cart tracks. The winter bluef in tuna fishing

brings a greater percentage of the trips to the charter fleet In their census of fishing trips

during the bulk of the 1997 winter season, Ditton et al. (1998) found only 27 percent of bluef in

167

tuna fishing trips were in private boats and the rest in charter boats. Ditton et al. (1998) found

51 charter boats in Hatteras in January.

Make up charters, where marinas organize the parties, are becoming more and more

common. A cap tain estimated that his marina did 140 make up charters in the past year. The

majo rity of the charter customers are after a good experience with offshore fishing. One

captain, who has been chartering for many years, believes that the motivations of the charter

customers are changing. He describes the current group as people who want to get way from

city jobs and have fun with something really different. A lot of them are outdoorsmen in other

areas. The fishing puts them in touch with wild creatures. The "game hogs," meaning those

prim arily interested in getting a lot of "mea t," have dwindled. He sees the customers as will to

accept limits when they are imposed. Often they are more willing to accept limits than people

who have fished all their lives. Meat, however, is still an important motivation for all anglers

except for billfish anglers. In fact, another captain, who does about a quarter of his business

on billfish, sees the growing catch and release ethic as having reduced angler interest in

marlins.

Captains say it is very hard to find a year round mate. The college studen ts who work

in the summer can make more money when they graduate. It’s a good lifestyle for a college

studen t, but to find someone year round they have to like to fish. These are more skilled

fishers and they want their own boats. One captain said that "of the boats that are fishing year

round, you can bet that the mates that they have are looking for a boat to fish in the future." He

estimates that about one in five mates are married and supporting a fam ily.

Changes in fishing affect charter bookings almost instantly. W ithin a couple of weeks

after a fish species is gone the marinas will start to get cancellations. Charter customers show

little loyalty to North Carolina as a place to fish. Ditton et al. (1998) found that less than a

majo rity of charter boat anglers (44 percen t) opposed restricting NC fishing to benefit other

parts of the coast, while a majo rity of the private anglers (57 percen t) opposed the measure.

They also found that anglers from NC were more likely to oppose the measure.

Because Hatteras attracts top sport fishers from around the world, the issues of

minimum sizes and trophy fish take on special significance. One captain, by his account and

that of others, attracts people who come specifica lly to fish for world records. They are

interested in setting records by catching smaller bluef in tuna on fly rods. In 1997 fishing for fish

between 27" and 73" was closed on March 2nd. Between, March 5th to March 18th, he had four

different groups of people coming to fish for bluef in tuna for world records; and they all

canceled because they cou ld not keep a world record fish even if they caught it. Few anglers

want to release bluef in tuna. Ditton et al. (1998) found that 60 percent opposed catch and

release only for bluef in tuna. Keeping trophy fish "means a lot to someone who has paid a

thousand dollars to go out fishing" the marina owner said.

The "charter business is not native sons any more" said one respon dent. A cap tain

estimated that where the village had 15 charter boats ten years ago there are now 40. These

are the charter boats that stay here all year round. Transient charters come for the "cream of

the crop," partic ularly the bluef in season. Ditton et al. (1998) found 51 charter boats in the

village during the 1997 bluef in season. There is tension between the local charter boats and

the transient charters because of increased competition for both fish and customers. One new

charter boat is a state-of-the-art luxury boat with fish finding electronics, a stereo, a microwave

and air conditioning. The loca ls argue that he cou ld get $1500 a day but instead charges but a

little more than the going rate. He has announced that he intends to take business from

people. However, they say that the charter fleet has not reached a saturation point and that the

customers are still happy. The charter captains say they generally work well together. There is

also tension with private recreational fishers who following the charter boats to see where they

fish.

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Another long-time, local fisherman is running two party boats. He is finding more and

more ways to make the party boat a fam ily excursion. He does pirate trips and other special

off shore trips. He also does birding trips.

Tournamen ts

The Hatteras Village Civic Association holds three tournam ents a year. Tourn ame nts

attract people for the prize money and the social events that surround them. The biggest in the

area is the Big Rock tournament the first week in June. The present tournament is three days

and many boats fish out of Hatteras. One marina manage r, interviewed just after a

tournament in May, reported that the tournament attracted 9 boats. This was an increase of a

third over the year round boats. Also in May is a tournament at another marina and one at a

private club. Tourn ame nts are in May because it is otherwise a slow month. There is also a

king mackerel tournament in the fall,

Recreational billfishing in Hatteras is described by respon dents as totally catch and

release. The only exception, and it is an important one, is large tournaments. There are seven

such tournam ents in North Carolina that are too large and if these tournam ents were not

allowed to kill fish it wou ld have a negative impact on all businesses related to recreational

fishing. The biggest tournament direc tly affecting Hatteras is the Big Rock in Morehead City.

Many boats in this tournament fish out of Hatteras. The blue marlins being killed in

tournam ents are 110" inches. Resp onden ts disagree about the affect of a 113' size limit on

these tournaments, but 113" inches is tending toward a rare event. It wou ld make it possible

that a tournam ents wou ld not catch any fish. The tournament at the private club in Hatteras is

a total release tournament and has been for five years. However, it is for a trophy only. The

organizer says that they lost a few people when they shifted to total release, but they picked up

even more. In his estimation, more people don't want to kill than do. The scales at the club are

rusted out, they couldn't weigh fish in any case.

The Winter Atlan tic Blue fin Tuna Fishery

Perhaps the most pressing issue for highly migratory species in Hatteras is the status

of the relatively new winter fishery for bluef in tuna. In their study of the 1997 bluef in tuna

fishing season, Ditton et al. (1998) found that bluef in tuna anglers spent $3.6 million dollars in

Hatteras in two and one-half months in the 1997 winter season. They estima te that this meant

a $7.6 million increase in the output of the Hatteras area economy which supported 170 jobs.

Dare Cou nty, the lowest level for which North Carolina Employment Secur ity Comm ission

figures are available, had an average of 1963 people on unemployment in the first quarter of

1997. This represents 14 percent of the workforce. In contras t, they had an average of 320

people on unemployment from June through August of 1997. Following these estimates, the

bluef in tuna fishery reduced unemployment in Dare Coun ty by eight percen t. These jobs,

however, wou ld tend to be concentrated in the Hatteras area, not spread across Dare Cou nty.

Although no figures are availa ble just for this area, it is reas onable to conclude that the impact

of the winter bluef in tuna fishery on local employment is very substan tial. A marina owner

reported that his receipts for March 1997 after the quota closed were down $100,000

compared to March of 1996 when anglers cou ld still land bluef in tuna. Unemployment in Dare

Coun ty in March of 1998, a year when the bluef in tuna had left earlier than in 1997 was 29

percent higher than in March of 1997. Some of this must be attribu table to the early

disappearance of the fish.

Resp onden ts view and respond to the winter fishery very diffe rently. They even

disagree about when it started. One offers this accou nt: "The first year (in her accou nt, 1996)

of the winter fishery people did not believe what was happening. They were hesitating making

any changes in response to it. Lots of people liked to go away in the winter anyway. The

second season people related to it as a bonanza. Lots of investment and talk about

expansion. The third season it began to collapse. People had become dependent thinking that

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they wou ld always have a twelve mon th seaso n." Our oldest respondent does not think

anything new is going on, he, and several others, think that it is just the natural variation in the

presence of fish. Still others are unhappy to see the new influx of tourists. They say only the

business people care. The rest of the com mun ity was perfectly happy to have a quiet winter

and see the tourists go home. Another respondent criticized all the hype. "It is true" she said

"that there has been an increase in visitors and money is coming in but the change has not

been that substan tial. Some articles make it sound like Hatteras was asleep and sudden ly

woke up. A couple of restaura nts and hote ls have stayed open but many people in the service

industry have remained unem ployed."

Those who now have winter jobs, and those who hire them, have different

perspectives. One woman now has employment all year round after ten years at a seasonal

restaurant job. "Before the bluef in the who le village shut down." One charter captain, who

happens to be skeptical about the future of the winter fishe ry, said that it has had a substantial

effect on the life style of the charter boat captains. Before the winter fishery they wou ld live in

the winter and early spring on their depos its for the following summ er. It also helps employers

with their problems finding and keeping employees. Looking for people that can do a job right

is always a problem, a marina owner related. Now you can hire people year round. This makes

it easier to hold on to good people and avoids the hassle of finding and training people all the

time.

Others wonder about the long term effects of these kinds of jobs. One respondent

pointed out that these are all service and tourist jobs where people make minimum wage or

just above. At the same time rent and property costs are high and are becoming higher as

Hatteras become an incre asingly popular destination. She is concerned about where the

children of working people living here will be able to find a job or a piece of property. Finding a

place on Hatteras Island for a low wage worker to live is already difficult. One marina has

turned a store room into a dorm for its seasonal workers.

Many people don't think the winter fishery will last. This is partic ularly true of the

fishing professionals. There have been people from other areas who came here because of

hype about a year round business. One businessman said that he needs the bluef in tuna to

stay around for seven more years to repays the loan he used to buy a fishing-related business

two years ago. He had been looking at this deal and decided against it, but a year later, with

the bluef in tuna in the picture, he decided that he cou ld make a go of it.

Fishing Association and Small-Boat Mixed-Fishery Concerns

The only active commercial fishing organization is the Hatteras-Ocracoke Auxiliary of

the North Carolina Fishe rme n's Association, which has been organized since 1992. In the

current Hatteras fleet there are 35 or so sm all gill net boats dependent on a very diverse

fishe ry. What disturbs them the most is the possibility of limited entry systems. They fish five

or six species a year but do not always fish the same ones every year. What scares them is

that they will not be fishing sometime when landings are counted for some system based on

current participation.

Field Observations and Interviews, Hatteras, NC, July 1999

Comm ercial fishing in Hatteras is said to be much like that of Ocracoke in terms of

the size and number of boats (30' to 45'). They mostly trawl for shrim p in the summer and

"drop net in the ocean for trout" in the winter. A distinction of Hatteras is that its crabbers are

said to be more conservative than those on the west banks of North Carolina: Hatteras

crabbers have little more than 300 pots apiece whereas on the western banks crabbers do not

run less than 1,000 pots apiece. According to one of our informants, the more diversified

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nature of fishing in the Hatteras area accou nts for the difference: "Our diversity allows us to

fish fewer pots."

There are three major sites for fishing boats in Hatteras: two marinas and the docks

off Altoona Lane. The docks on Altoona Lane are said to service 20 to 25 crabbers and

fishermen, using sm all boats, up to 35', as well as a couple of larger boats, including a 47'

boat used for dogfish by a local fisherman who was fishing up off Mass achus etts during our

visit. One of the manage rs of a seafood house here said of the fishermen “They’re doing

everything they can do to make it. The y’ll probably be left standing because they do so many

different things while inland they only do one or two things.” He also said it has been hard to

get people to work on the boats or in his fish house because of various regulations.

One of the businesses we interviewed has been in place since 1982. It has

experienced a major decline in business from 1994 to 1999, an almost 50% decline. The

owner blames this on regulations, in a sub tle process: “They take one thing away, then

another and another, and finally it all makes a big impact.” He says that he’s “a believer in the

cycle of fish. However, the fishery manage rs disagree”. Still, he insists, "Our fish are coming

back now like in ’80 and ’81. Things like the weather patterns make a big difference in whether

there are fish around or not.”

He said that he used to go to fisheries meetings all the time but doesn’t anymore

because “they already have their minds made up.” And he has taken to giving money to

politicians rather than to fishe rmen’s associations. He feels that the sportsfishermen have

more money, and that’s why they are winning out. He did say that a state senator from North

Carolina has been a champion of the commercial fishermen.

As far as the local com mun ity is concerned, he said that it has turned against

commercial fishermen in the last 5 or 6 years, prim arily because of the ascendancy of tourism.

“I’m fighting to stay here, to keep the business viable, what with the mortgage, taxes, all those

things.” W hile there obvio usly have been efforts to preserve wetlands within Hatteras,

especia lly in outlying areas and near the Altoona Lane docks, some large, expensive houses

and condominiums have been built on or next to wetland parcels. As he puts it, “There are 20

slips here, and they’re probably worth $1,200 ,000.” He sees that pressure is coming to change

this area into a residential and/or tourist area. “I don ’t blame the com munity. It’s changing, but

we don ’t want to change with them ,” he said.

Another dock in Hatteras is owned by a company based in Wanchese, NC. It is a very

sm all dock, and the dock manager is the major fisherman. He dogfishes in the winter. He

leases his boat because, he says, it's too risky to buy it, especia lly "since we're losin' it" with

regards to management of the dogfish fishe ry. The gillnets they use for dogfish are very

expensive. He believes they cou ld have doubled their dogfish catch if they regeared, but won't

regear because of the pending regulation. They wou ld have regeared a year ago, but they told

them the regulation was coming last year, preventing them from buying new gear then. He

said if they had known it wasn 't coming until later this year, they wou ld have regeared then, but

now it's too late to make it profitable. "They can't put you right out of business, but they'll chisel

away at you 'till you can't help but get out of it." "They try to preserve species in the same

waters, even when they aren't compatible, even when they eat each other”.

This man gillnets for dogfish in the winter. He has 1,300 yards of 4 inch mesh net for

croaker. He only sets the sm all nets twice. He said most fishers in this area do both large and

sm all mesh netting. In the winter they sm all mesh for croaker and grey trout, but these

species are so plentiful then that the fish houses won't buy from the sm all time fishers. He

said that they aren't getting any trout this year anyway; "trout this year are almost non-

existent."

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He says that the way that the inlet has been changing has grea tly reduced their ability

to catch fish in the inlet. The deep water channel has shifted parallel to the shore, making it

unlikely that fish wou ld travel past the sand bars, into the channe l. They usually set the pound

nets just off the edge of the deep water channe l, and a few stop nets in the channe l. They

have seen fewer fish since the shift.

The weather had been too windy for the past four weeks. The curren ts are too strong

for the bottom fish. No one had packed here for the past two weeks. There is generally a lull

this time of the year(July). "But the longhaulers will pick up soon."

The fishermen's hango ut, or where they gather when there are more around, tends to

be Oden's dock or Sonn y's Restaurant

Wanchese

Wanchese and Its Fishery (Note: this section is based on Wilson and McCay 1998).

In 1990, Wanchese (including the village as well as Nags Head and Roanoke Island)

had 1,374 residents. Twen ty percent of the com munity's workers were employed in

'agriculture, forestry and fishing' in 1990, the highest of the coastal communities. The relative

absence of seasonal change in population for Wanchese departs from the normal pattern of

seasonal variation found in the surrounding communities. Since commercial fishing is central

to the economy of Wanchese, it does not see the shifts in population that occur due to tourism

in the summer months. Unlike the surrounding communities, Wanchese has very little

seasonal variation in employment resulting from tourism; what seasonal fluctuations do exist

are caused by the availability of the fisheries resources and are countered by the flexibility and

opportun istic nature of the Wanchese fishermen. This flexibility is now being threatened by

decline in fish stocks and restrictions on fisheries. However, the tourism industries in the

surrounding communities do provide seasonal employment opportunities to residen ts of

Wanchese.

Wanchese is located on the southern part of Roanoke Island, on the northern part of

North Caro lina's coast. Although ultim ately unsuccess ful, the first American colony was

Roanoke Island; today, a local theater group’s re-enactment of this historical event is a

popular tourist attraction.

Throughout the nineteen th cen tury, the commercial fishing industry expanded, due in

part to the involvement of the first postmaster. This postmaster owned or financed most of the

commercial fishing boats in Wanchese; he also established a system of cred it for the

fishermen at his store, which was paid off when they brought in their catches. During that time,

almost all of the residen ts of Wanchese were commercial fishermen. Today the village still

revolves around fishing but has expanded to include processing plants. Though traditio nally a

commercial fishing com munity, recent growth in tourism and recreational fishing has sparked

competition between the new and the old for a restricted resource.

W anchese's first fish house was begun in 1936 by the grandfather of the current

generation that still runs two fish houses in the com munity, one of which related this histo ry.

His son fished the first trawler in Wanchese in the 1950s. He took a little 65' wooden boat and

converted it into a fishing trawler. The grandfather stayed and helped packing boats but he

was a gillnetter at heart and wou ld rather be catching fish. In those days they were fishing

more in Pamlico and Abermarle Sounds than in the ocean. They beached fished for sea

mollusks, trout, croakers, spots, striped bass, and bluefish. In the Sounds they fished

croakers, butterfish, Spanish macke rel, spots, and pigfishes. W ith the trawler they began

flounder fishing in the winter. Then they wou ld go offshore and catch some sea bass later in

the year. They bought another similar boat and then a W W I converted subchaser. The

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subchaser was the first boat to try scalloping. The owner of a third fish house built the first

flynet in 1971.

Fishing Associations

Fishing related associations include the Oregon Inlet Users Association and the North

Carolina Fisheries Association. The former is involved with supporting the plans for jetties at

Oregon Inlet; they are resp ons ible for organizing both the Wanchese Seafood Festival and the

Blessing of the Fleet. The latter is a trade organization of seafood dealers and commercial

fishermen from the state; two mem bers of the 18 member Board of Directors are from

Wanchese.

Fishing Related Businesses

There are approxim ately 117 sm all businesses in Wanchese, 44 of which are

commercial or charter fishing businesses. Some of the more prominent local businesses are

described below. Support industries, such as boat builders and seafood packers, are also of

great importance to the commercial fisheries.

Seven families of seafood dealers ring the seafood industrial park and serve as the

focus of activity for an estimated 200 fishing families who live in Wanchese as well as

fishermen from as far away as New Bedford, MA, and Portland, ME (Griffith 1996: 44). One of

the major fish houses, which specializes in scallop and flounder, in the early 1990s had

fourteen boats which include trawlers, scallop boats and smaller boats for gill netting as well

as two scallop boats in Alaska. (In 1999 this company owend 13 trawlers and 2 freezer boats

taht were fishing calico scallops in Argen tina.) They have three packaging and processing

houses, a fish-packing house and a processing and freezing operation in North Carolina,

Virgin ia and Massachusetts. Seafood is distributed loca lly and nationally by truck and

intern ationally by air freight. Another of the several major fish houses, which specializes in

hooked fish, is an important seafood distributer. W hile only operating one boat, this company

buys regu larly from 35 local and over 70 non-local boats. A third fish house, which specializes

in bulk fish, packs the fish from its own two vessels; transportation of their product is set up

through an agreement with the first com pany. There are several other seafood businesses in

Wanchese as well, some of which own their own trawlers.

The Wanchese Seafood Industrial Park was constructed in 1980 by the state; it is

operated by the North Carolina Department of Comm erce. According to the brochure put out

by North Carolina Power in 1995, the park has, among other features, “30 acres of leasable

land,” “a 15-acre deep water harbor,” and “1,500 feet of com mercial-style concre te docks.”

There are currently seven seafood related businesses located at the park. As of 1999, there

were also a number of boat builders and other marine related companies in the industrial park.

Most of these businesses build and service high dollar sport fishing boats, yachts, headboats,

etc., and have been started, according to one of our informants, only in the 1990s.

Part of the Wanchese Seafood Industrial Park project were plans for inlet

stabilization. Orig inally, the seafood park that now takes up half of the newly expanded

Wanchese harbor was voted down by the people in the com munity. The reason they finally put

it in was because of the issue of a jetty for Oregon Inlet, which is the most direct route for

Wanchese boats to get to open ocean. The state argued that if they were going to spend a

hundred million dollars on a jetty the federal government should dredge the harbor, as part of

the agreement of the Mateo (Shallowbag) Bay Projec t. At that time, the harbor was half as

wide as it is now. They dredged it out and piled the spill in the area which is now occupied by

the park. They put a cement dock in as well. The state essentia lly came back to the

Wanchese com mun ity and said if you want a jetty at Oregon Inlet, you have to have the

seafood park first. At first they revolted and then acquiesced because of the importance of the

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Inlet. They had been trying to get the jetty since the 1950s. Ironic ally, they still have n’t gotten it

jettied.

The industrial park is also the scene of the annual blessing of the fleet, which is put on

by the Oregon Inlet Users Association.

Wanchese as a Multispecies Fishery (adapted from Wilson and McCay 1998)

A central fact about fishing in Wanchese is the large number of com mercially

important species caugh t. Many respon dents interviewed in 1998 emphasized how they have

to be versatile to survive, partic ularly because they face quick changes in water temperatures

and other conditions affecting fish availa bility. They suggest that Wanchese is much more of a

mixed fishery than in the north where people can fish the same species year round. Because

of the weather, summer is the time that the tunas and swordfish are access ible to the medium

sized boats that can both gillnet and longline, and late summer is a slow time for everything

else. A cap tain of one of these medium size boats, however, said that he wou ld prefer to stick

with shark fishing year round because of the danger of going for tuna and swordfish farther off

shore. They gillnet for dogfish, bluefish, Spanish macke rel, trout, and croakers. The latter two

are important in the winter and Spanish mackerel is important in the spring and fall. They

bottom fish for bass and grouper. There are a number of gillnet boats that switch over to

charter fishing in the summ er. Large trawl boats fish for squ id in the summer and a

smorgas bord of weakfish, croaker, and flounder in the winter. Squ id requires them to travel

north. There are now less than fifteen of these trawl boats that stay at Wanchese.

The combination of this shifting multispecies fishery and management leads to a

complaint voiced by nearly every Wanchese fisher and fish dealer talked to in 1998.

Wanchese fishers are used to jumping from species to species, but management causes

everyone to jumps at the same time. As one respondent put it "this may be good for a specific

species at a specific time but it is not good for the who le system ." The price of the fish dives

when fishers have to shift their effort all to the same species. Some marginal fishers get driven

out when these shifts happen. A respondent associated this observation with the fact that

there used to be 7-8 Black fishers, and now there are only two. This effect is especia lly felt

when the fishing is good. Another respon dent, a fish dealer, said "W e had a tremendous

amount of fish this winter, one of the busiest winters in a long time. The price of fish was

cheaper all winter because everyone was fishing on the same thing. [My] personal trawlers

scalloped and floundered. When floundering closed, we had to flynet, fishing for the same fish

as gill netters in sm all boats. W e caught a lot, but got nothing for it. I have 350,000 lbs of

croakers left, that were caught in March, frozen."

The closeness of the kinship and other historical networks in the com mun ity allows for

flexib le cooperation that matches the flexibility of the fishe ry. For example, one fish house

provides freight for all the houses on a flexible, contingency basis. Another house has two

tractor trailers and if that house has less than 10,000 lbs one day they take their freight on the

first house's trucks. Another uses this service when he has under 5,000 lbs, because he has

one sm all truck. The house that provides the freight service used to have seven trucks,

however, now they have four.

Issues of Crew and Owners hip

Hiring and managing crew is getting incre asingly difficult. This is especia lly true for the

larger boats that need people who can stay out longer. There is a lot of turnover in fishing

crews, partic ularly when boats have to shift fisheries and the revenue drops. It used to be that

job alternatives, carpentry and building for the tourist industry are common examples, did not

pay as well as fishing. This is often no longer the case. Including the captain, gillnet boats take

two or three people, smaller longliners take three people, the larger longliners try to have four

174

but sometimes fish with three. Many respon dents reported seeing a trend where those people

who are availa ble for this work were transients or people who cannot find employment

elsewhere. There have been problems with alcohol, drugs depen dability and crew creating

troub le in the general com munity. Several respon dents reported that they had or knew of

boats that were not fishing specifica lly because they cou ld not find crew to hire.

Wanchese is a conservative, rural com mun ity where major fishing business decisions

have hinged on interpretations of how the Sabba th should best be honored. Some boat

owners are very disturbed at the prospect of dealing with drunkenness, drugs and theft in

crew. This goes beyond simply management headaches. People in Wanchese want, as they

have in the past, to give jobs to people who are going to contribute to stab le com mun ity that

reflects their values. One boat owner said "this is what makes me want to quit. I can handle

dealing with regulations, I can ’t deal with the crew. You have to deal with people you wou ldn’t

want to assoc iate with. The good people are just giving it up and trying to find shore jobs."

Successful fishers from prominent fishing families are discouraging their children from going

into fishing.

Many captains and boat owners are searching for alternatives. Fishing is an industry

that allows people to make a good living based on skills and knowledge that do not come from

formal education. As one respondent put it, "a guy who ’s making $1000 a week fishing with no

education is not going to get a job on land for $1000 a week ." Selling boats is difficult. There

are few buyers. Searching for buyers and listing the boat for sale makes it even more difficult

to find and keep crew. People are leaving fishing for carpentry and building for the tourist

indus try. Many go into running charter boats.

Field Observations and Interviews, Wanchese, NC, July 1999

In July 1999 we interviewed the owner of one of W anchese's seafood businesses.

He began his business in 1974. His fam ily has been in Wanchese since before the 1770s,

having moved down from Gloucester, Massachusetts. Theirs is one of the five ma in families

in the Wanchese area, "distant enough that our kids can mar ry."

His fish house has 15 full time employees. 3 drive from Columb ia but the rest are all

local com mun ity residen ts (Wanchese/Manns Harbor). 90% of their business is packing for

wholesale. They process about 5% and freeze about 5% of their produc t. Most of their

product is shipped to Boston, NY, Baltimore, Philadelph ia and Atlanta.

Our informant indicated that there are currently approxim ately 25 trawlers out of

Wanchese (over 65 foot). There are approxim ately 35/40 boats in the 40-60 foot range.

Business has declined. In 1983 his company packed 350 boats. In 1981 they packed 52

draggers; in 1998 they packed 2 draggers. He said that they are currently doing about 25% of

the poundage that they did in the good years. Half of what he sells is now imported from other

regions of the US. He doesn't import from other countries. He does some export of fluke and

other sushi-quality fish to Japan.

At first he said that 90% of the people in the Wanchese area are involved somehow in

fishing. Later in the conversation, when thinking about all the new businesses moving into the

area (par ticula rly a few large pleasure boat builders), he revised his estima te to 50%. He said

that most of the crew are from the local area, but when he thought of his own captains and

crew, he named places in Maryland, Florida, and Virgin ia as well as North Carolina. He said

that it's almost imposs ible getting and maintaining quality crew. He said it's almost a worse

problem that dealing with the governmen t.

He said that the good fishers are doing alright. Versa tility is important. Those who

want to make a good living have to be willing to change gear a number of times throughout the

175

year. He believes that the government does not take into consideration how the fishers'

options are narrowed by the regulations. But, he believes that "a good person willing to work

will do just as well today as what they wou ld in earlier years." Still, there are few young owner-

operators. He said that he cannot encourage his kids to go into commercial fishing, "even

though they cou ld make as much money as my daddy could." His father never encouraged

him to go into the packing business, and, in fact, was hos tile toward other packers before

W illie got into it.

When asked about the ethnicity of the captains and crews, our informant said that

there are African-American brothers who own three boats in the area. He did not give us

details. He also mentioned a cap tain from Engelhard, an "unbelieva bly articulate but shy

individual," who was praised for his efforts at speaking up at state meetings. He was

defending crabbers and shrimpers at one meeting where he repo rtedly told the MFC that

"you'll hurt my people with these regulations." After his stories there wasn 't a dry eye in the

audience.

In regard to the tension between the commercial and recreational fishing industries,

he said: "Less than 3% of US citizens ever catch a fish in the ocean. The American people

wouldn't let them put us out of business, especia lly if they know who that 3% is." This

informant takes on pub lic relations opportunities when possible. A major television network

was doing a docum entary on commercial fishing and was interviewing him the next week.

Our second informant in Wanchese in 1999 was the cap tain of a fishing vessel and

introduced to us as "the most knowledgeable on what the regulations are doing" and well read.

He has been fishing for 10 years and is in his late twenties or early thirties. He said that he is

the younger of all the captains and that there are two others around his age.

Annual Round: Starting Jan 1, he longlines for shark for 2 months. In March he

retoo ls and gill nets in the ocean through April. After a two week vacation, April - June he

longlines for tuna. When longlining he uses what he called a Japanese green stick, a straight

flexib le pole that is raised from the middle of the boat to raise the height of the line into the

water. W ith a float at the end of the longline, hooks are rigged at various lengths in consistent

intervals off the back of the longline. In July he goes back to shark fishing "every day until the

federal quota is met." August 1 he is home, doing some longlining, but mostly "hanging low."

September 1 he is back longlining for big eye tuna. In October he mou nts reels for King

Mac kere l. October through November he reels for King Mac kere l, "but the sharks are back

and we're not allowed to catch 'em." November he gillnets in the ocean for croaker and

bluefish. When gillnetting, he'll also catch bluef in tuna, rockfish, flounder and shark as

bycatch. In December some fishers in the area pot for seabass, but this is reserved for those

who have a perm it. He doesn't have a seabass perm it. In the last four years he has fished

from Jacksonville, FL to Montauk, NY.

One of the first things this cap tain said challenged the politicization of the regulatory

process: "One day the truth will set you free, without mon ey." He was referring to the

politicians for sale to the highest bidder. He complained about one aspect of the current

regulations that many others also complained about. He said that he is forced to throw

thousands of pounds overboard a year, because he cannot keep more than a certa in

poundage. He said that last year he had to throw 34-36% overboard. He also complained

about a 5% com mun ity quota for "pub lic disp lay" on his shark catch. He said that 5% of the

state shark quota is reserved for places like pub lic aquariums. He is also worried about a

pending croaker plan in the works for next year. He complained about the bad science used

in collecting the NMFS data and mentioned poor sampling techniques as his central example.

He also complained about the regulatory bureaucracy creating work for itself for the ma in

purpose of maintaining the bureaucracy itself. He worries about the lack of regulations on the

recreational indus try. "There is no accou ntability for the recreational industry and the laws

con tinua lly benefit them.

176

When criticizing recreational fishers, the captain spoke mostly in the abstrac t. Yet he

spoke kind ly of the recreational fishers in Wanchese. "W e are blessed to have charter and

commercial industries that work together. In the winter, captains run other boats and the

crews hire on to commercial boats." He believes that relations between recreational and

commercial fishers are worse "up North" and in Florida. According to him , the pub lic

perception of fishermen is worse in those areas.

He has been involved in politicking for commercial fishing interests. He made up t-

shirts criticizing the sports fishing indus try, placing provocative pictures of the waste caused by

sport fishing tournaments. He's been handing out these t-shirts and bumper stickers he

created since the '97 ICCAT meetings. He said he loves to read "the enem y's propaganda"

and to contradict it.

Our third informant in Wanchese is a well-known fisherman who actually docks his

boat in Newport News, Virginia, 120 miles away by truck, in order to avoid going in and out of

Oregon Inlet, where his boat went aground in 1983. Thus, much of what he had to say about

the fisheries applies to fishing out of Newport News, Virginia, as well as Wanchese.

Three-quarters of his year is involved in fishing for Atlan tic macke rel, sea herring

("Labrador herring"), and squ id (both Loligo and Illex). All of these fisheries are low price, high

volume fisheries. His boat carries up to 200,000 lb. with a sea water freezer on board. He

said that his boat was one of four boats built as lobster boats in the seventies. All four of these

boats are currently doing different kinds of fishing. He made sure to point out the versatility of

his boat and how important that was to his surv ival.

He usually goes out fishing for 2 or 3 days at a time, mostly due to the peris hab le

quality of squ id in the heat. He usually lands between 50,000 and 60,000 lbs. of squ id per day.

He carries up to 200,000 lbs. of mackerel and herring in the winter. He fishes from Cape May

to Hatteras. In the summer they go out 100-150 miles. It’s mostly the same in the winter,

except they may travel further north to intercept the fish earlier. He said that last year the

mackerel “put the brakes on in Jersey.” The boat norm ally draws 12 foot but will draw as

much as 16 foot when full. Although he no longer longlines, Jimmy said it was his father that

brought longlining to Wanchese (swordfish & mako shark)

One thing that keeps his fisheries strong is that a local Wanchese dealer, who also

owns two squid-fishing boats, buys squ id all year. This keeps the market consis tent.

This cap tain believes that tourism will never hit Wanchese as hard as it hit the outer

banks of North Carolina. First, they have no true tourist facilities. Second, the property in

Wanchese is handed down through families that have been there for generations. At one time

his wife’s fam ily owned all the land in the area they now live.

He believes that fishers will always have problems with pub lic relations. “Our

independence is going to be our downfall. The recreational industry has more people, money

and they are better organized.” They count heavily on local political suppo rt: “Our county is

supportive. W e have supportive county com miss ioners.” (In 1998 the theme of commercial

and recreational fisheries relationships and pub lic relations was also an important one in

Wanchese. A fisher interviewed then, by D. Wilson, was very concerned about the effect of

management politics, partic ularly the increased tension between the commercial and

recreational communities, on the com mun ity and the people in it. "It’s getting worse because

of the propag anda... I’ve never wanted to adm it it until now, I won ’t be fishing in a couple

years. One, if you really care about what you are doing, it consumes you. Even though you

have groups and organizations, everybody don ’t represent everybody’s interests. You can ’t be

at every meeting. When you look at the schedules of the meetings, you’ve got to do one or the

other. This is a com mun ity and it is dividing us and it will get worse. " (Wilson and McCay

1998).

177

He was just appointed to a major fishery management position and has long been

active on advisory committees. He said that most fishers are not very active in the politics of

the indus try, with important exceptions in the Wanchese area. He says that the North

Carolina Fisherm an’s Association has been very effective, but not in his fishe ry. “We have

been ahead of the regulations in my fishery.” Squ id already has a limited entry program. But

limiting themselves to a specific fishery has disadvantages. “Because we were developing our

fishe ry, the scallop and ground fisheries were closed to us.” Because other management

plans rely on past landings to determine eligibility for quotas, those who can ’t show a catch

history for a specific species can ’t acquire part of the quota. “The special species perm its limit

our flexibility.” He noted that Chincoteaque is landing four times the summer flounder they

used to because of the way the quotas have been distributed. “Th is is good for Chincoteaque,

but bad for others. The councils need to get away from a state by state management system.

The only way to manage effectively is by some kind of flexib le individual quota.” He

acknowledges that with individual quotas there will be big winners and big losers.

The cap tain is concerned about his son ’s ability to fish for a living. “That’s part of the

reason I took the [man agem ent] position. If I have to sell out, I’m selling their right to fish.” He

wou ld have to sell the licenses with the boat and it wou ld be very difficult for his children to get

their own licenses. They have to show the landings or they have to buy perm its from others

who at this point are very reluctant to sell. One person who has developed a good way for

young people to get into the business is Larry Simns, director of the Maryland W aterm en's

Association. He started an apprentic esh ip program to transfer licenses only to those who are

most likely to continue fishing and succeed.

Albemar le Area (Currituck, Camden, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Chowan, Bertie, Washington,

Tyrrell and Related Inland Counties)

The primary gears of the fishermen working on the northern and southenr shores of

Albemarle sound and its tributaries are gill nets, pound nets, crab pots, and eel pots, and the

primary fisheries are flounder, herring, blue crab, and eels. Griffith (1996) found that in 1995

fishermen were concerned about the rising population of striped bass, the role of low oxygen

or “dead water” in forcing crowding in crab potting, paper mill discharges, and the need to

recogn ize the importance of Albemarle as a nursery area. Principal social problems were

crowding, part- time fishing, theft/destruction of gear, problems with recreational interests,

communication problems with state regulators, and the organizion of crabbing fleets by

processors. Fishermen are highly independent of the marketing/processing sector, and one

of the responses of dealers in this region to difficulty getting supply of crabs was to encourage

the development of a substantial Vietnamese presence in the local fisheries (Griffith 1996: 41).

W e provide brief sketches of each of the counties of the Albemarle area, which we did

not visit during the summer of 1999.

Tyrre ll Coun ty (pop. 3,672, 1997) is an important fishing area on the southern side of

Albemarle Sound, with over 4.5 million lbs., worth over 3.3 million dollars, landed in 1998.

Crab-potting dominates (91% poundage, 88.5% value). Fluke are a distant second (5.6%) to

crabs in value. Gill-netting, pound nets, fyke nets, and fish, turtle, and eel pots round-out the

estuarine assemblage, used to capture 31 species. In 1990 23 white males declared fishing

their occupation in the census. W e were told by several people interviewed that sizeable

numbers of Vietnamese were brought to the port of Columb ia in this county to fish for crabs;

there are also said to be some Vietnamese on the northern side of Albemarle Sound.

According to Diaby (1999:35), in 1997 there were 128 ETS issued, and an average fishing

income of $21,097, considerably more than the $16,757 earned by the average wage worker.

178

Mar tin Cou nty, on the Roanoke River near Albemarle Sound, had a riverine fishery in

1998, using drift and float gill nets for alewives (river herring) and hickory shad. Although few

pounds were landed in 1998, in 1990 8 black males declared themselves fishers in this

county.

Bert ie Coun ty (pop. 20,248, 1997), at the western end of Albemarle Sound and up the

Roanoke River, had a sm all fishery in 1998 based on crab pots, fyke nets, gill nets, and pound

nets, to harvest 16 species, such as gizzard shad, alewives, eels, catfish, carp, and fluke. In

1990 there were 11 white ma le and 2 black ma le fishers in this county. According to Diaby

(1999: 35), there were 21 ETS issued in 1997, and the average fishing income was $7,295,

compared with $17,795 average annual wage per worker.

Halifax Cou nty, up the Roanoke River, had a sm all beach seine fishery in 1998, which

caught mostly spot but also species such as bluefish, butterfish, Atlan tic croacker, red drum,

fluke, harvestfish, kingfishes, Spanish macke rel, Atlan tic menhaden, mullets, pompano,

spotted seatrou t, sharks, sheepshead, weakfish. In 1990 no one declared fishing as an

occupation in the census.

Orange, Lenoir, and Lee are other counties that reported some very sm all

commercial landings in 1998, with values below $1,000.

Fishing in Washington Coun ty (pop. 13,297, 1997), on the southern side of Albemarle

Sound, is ma inly sm all-sc ale and dominated by crab-potting (89% lbs.), gill-netting, and

pound-netting. Twenty-three species were caugh t, but none besides blue crabs and fluke

were significant in 1998. In 1990 16 white males declared fishing as their occupation in the

U.S. Census. In 1997 there were 46 ETS, with average fishing income estimated at $17,189,

versus $19,179 general wages (Diaby 1999: 35).

Chowan Coun ty (pop. 14,219, 1997), up the Chowan River from Albemarle Sound,

had a sm all inshore fishery for a very diverse set of 36 species, ranging from alewives, mullets

and gizzard shad to swordfish and tuna. Fluke represented about one-quarter of the landings,

by value; other important species were catfishes, blue crabs, alewives, mullets, white perch,

American shad and striped bass. Gears used were sim ilarly diverse, including everything from

turtle hooks and fyke nets to surface longlines, but gill-nets, crab pots and pound -nets

contributed most to the total value, which came to over 900,000 dollars in 1998 (landings were

about 1.8 million pounds). No one was recorded as a fisher in the 1990 census. The

Chowan River has been a major site for river herring (alewife) pound net fishing since the

1960s (North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 1993: 13). Average income from fishing in

1997 for 81 Chowan Coun ty residen ts with ETS was $13,427, versus $20,544 general

average wage (Diaby 1999: 35).

Hertford Coun ty (pop. 21,916, 1997), across the Chowan River from Chowan Cou nty,

had a sm all riverine fishery in 1998. Techniques included drift gill nets, pound nets, fish pots,

and trotlines, and the species included catfish, garfish, striped bass, white perch, gizzard shad,

alewives, and mullet. In 1990 2 white males said they were fishers on the census. Average

income from fishing in 1997 for 11 ETS was $2,292, showing that fishing is usually part- time

here (Diaby 1999:35).

Perquimans Coun ty (pop. 10,900, 1997), on the north side of Albemarle Sound, is

another crabbing center in North Carolina. Blue crabs were about 75% of the value in 1998.

However, gill-nets constituted about one-quarter of the landings and value, which were close

to 2 million pounds and dollars in 1998. Fluke made up over 10% of the landings by weight

and 20% by value. Only 2 white males declared fishing as their occupation in the 1990

census. Average income from fishing in 1997 was $18,502, for 87 ETS, a little more than the

$17,132 average annual wage per worker (Diaby 1999: 35).

179

Pasquotank Coun ty (pop. 34,519, 1997), also northern Albemarle Sound, and the

western side of the Pasquotank River, has a very sizeable fishe ry, valued at almost 3.5 million

dollars in 1998. 76% of this value came from crab pots; 19% from sink gill nets. Fluke made

up 17.3% of the landings. This is a highly diversified fishe ry, including beach and haul seines,

gill-netting, pound nets, rod-n-reel, and other techniques for 35 species. In 1990 the census

reported 42 white males and 7 white females as "fishers." In 1997, according to Diaby

(1999:35), the average fishing income of $19,320, for 130 ETS, was similar to the average

annual wage of $21,166.

Camden Coun ty (pop. 6,308, 1997), on the eastern side of the Pasquotank River, is

mostly dependent on crabbing, which accounted for over 98% of its landings of 1.7 million lbs.

($1.5 million) in 1998. There was a sm all amount of gill-netting, eeling, and trolling for tuna as

well that year. Fluke were second to crab in value but accounted for less than 1% of the total.

The 1990 census showed no fishers. 51 ETS were issued in 1997, and the average fishing

income was $14,153, versus $19,765 average annual wage per worker (Diaby 1999: 35).

Currituck Coun ty (pop. 16,571, 1997), on the far northeastern coast of the state and

encompassing Currituck Sound, had a sizeable crab and fluke fishe ry, over 2 million lbs. and

1.8 million dollars in 1998. Blue crabs were worth over 85% and fluke over 12% of the total

weigh-out value. The gears ranged from pound nets (2.3%) and pots (80%) to gill nets

(10.6%), as well as numerous minor inshore fishing techniques. In the 1990 census 62 white

males were listed as fishers. According to Diaby (1999: 35), 212 ETS were issued in 1997,

and the average fishing income was $17,134, slight ly less than the average annual wage per

worker of $18,588.

Fisheries Profiles: Other North Carolina Counties:

Comm ercial fishing is important in many other North Carolina counties as well.

Following are profiles of counties for which landings were reported in 1998, in rough

geographical order, from southwest to northea st. Counties where landings were very sm all in

1998 are signified by full indentations and italics. Population figures for 1997 are from Diaby

(1999:35), based on the July 1997 estima te from the Office of State Planning, Office of the

Governor. Estimates of fishing income were derived from various sources described in Diaby

(1999: 35).

Brunswick, Pender, and related Inland Counties

Brunswick Coun ty (pop. 65,200, 1997), at the southwestern end of the coast, has a

diversified estuarine and inshore fishe ry, which yielded almost 3 million lbs and over 4.8 million

dollars in 1998 (Tables NC-BC1 ,2). Shrim p trawls and rod-n-reel account for most of the

landings by value; shellfish techniques ("by hand, bull rakes, hand rakes, hand tongs"), crab

pots, trolling, and other techniques are also found. The major species by value was shrim p

(48%); it was followed by a fairly even representation of porgies, snappers, groupers, hard

clams, oysters, spot, triggerfish, and swordfish. In 1990 89 white men and 36 black men, plus

12 white women, claimed the occupation of fisher, and 23 white men were captains and other

officers on the census. According to Diaby (1999: 35), there were 688 ETS issued in 1997,

and the average fishing income that year was $11,572, comapred with an average annual

wage per worker of $23,860.

Pender Coun ty (pop. 37,208, 1997), up the Cape Fear River from Wilmington, is the

site of estuarine and ocean fisheries, amounting to about $770,000 worth, for 535,000 lbs. in

1998. 19 gear types were used that year, ranging from shrim p trawls and four different kinds

of gill-nets to a variety of shell-fishing techniques and sm all sca le nets (butterfly net, cast net,

channel net). Shrimp, clams, crabs, and oysters were major. Fluke made up 2.1% of value

and porgies 3.2% of value. Other ocean fishes are king macke rel, spot, snappers, and

groupers. In 1990 66 white males declared fishing as their occupation. Diaby (1999: 35)

180

reports 239 ETS issued in 1997, with average fishing income of $8,599 compared with an

average annual wage of $19,329.

Bladen Cou nty, up the Cape Fear River, was the site of a gill-net fishe ry, plus a little

oystering, haul-seining and crab potting in 1998. Species caught included crabs, spot, shad,

croaker, and other bay and estuarine species. The 1990 census showed 8 black men as

fishers. Robeson Cou nty, far inland up the same river, had a few landings in 1998 as well.

Columbus Cou nty, between Brunswick and Bladen Counties and on the Cape Fear

River, had a sm all fishe ry, ma inly oysters but also sm all amo unts of spot, shad, fluke, bluefish,

and crabs. It was valued at less than $70,000 in 1998. Techniques include crab pots, gill nets,

gigs, and "by hand." The 1990 census showed no fishers as occupational types.

181

8. References Cited:

Cier i, Marie. 1999. A Report on Com mun ity Development Issues in the Fishing Com mun ity of

Belford, NJ. Prepared for Course 970:652, Rutgers University, February 9, 1999. 30 pp.

Diaby, Souleymane. 1999. An Econom ic Prof ile of the Comm ercial Fishing Industry in Coastal

North Carolina. Morehead City, North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural

Resources, Division of Marine Fisheries. 47pp.

Fricke, Peter. 1999. Comm unities in the Spiny Dogfish Fishery. Silver Spring, MD: National

Marine Fisheries Service, Sus tainable Fisheries Division. Draft November 12, 1999.

Johnson, Jeffrey C. and Michael K. Orbach. 1996. Effort Management in North Carolina

Fisheries: A Total Systems Approach. Fisheries Research Repo rts to the North Carolina

Moratorium Steering Comm ittee. Greenville, NC: North Carolina Sea Grant College Program

and Institute for Coastal and Marine Resources.

Garrity-Blake, Barbara J. 1996. To Fish or Not to Fish: Occupational Transitions W ithin the

Comm ercial Fishing Com munity, Carteret Cou nty, N.C. Fisheries Research Repo rts to the

North Carolina Moratorium Steering Comm ittee. Greenville, NC: North Carolina Sea Grant

College Program and Institute for Coastal and Marine Resources.

Griffith, David. 1996. Impa cts of New Regulations on North Carolina Fishermen: A

Classificatory Analysis. Fisheries Research Repo rts to the North Carolina Moratorium Steering

Comm ittee. Greenville, NC: North Carolina Sea Grant College Program and Institute for

Coastal and Marine Resources.

Griffith, Dav id and Roger A. Rulifson. 1996. Characterization of the North Carolina

Recreational Shrim p Trawl Fishery: A Preliminary Analysis. Fisheries Research Repo rts to

the North Carolina Moratorium Steering Comm ittee. Greenville, NC: North Carolina Sea

Grant College Program and Institute for Coastal and Marine Resources.

Johnson, Jeffrey C. and Michael K. Orbach. 1996. Effort Management in North Carolina

Fisheries: A Total Systems Approach. Fisheries Research Repo rts to the North Carolina

Moratorium Steering Comm ittee. Greenville, NC: North Carolina Sea Grant College Program

and Institute for Coastal and Marine Resources.

McC ay, Bonnie J. and Jonathan S. O'Neil. 1999a. Econom ic and Social Characteristics of the

New York Party and Charter Boat Industry. Prepared by the Ecopolicy Center for Agriculture,

Environmental and Resource Issues, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station/Cook

College, Rutgers the State Univers ity of New Jers ey.

McC ay, Bonnie J. and Jonathan S. O'Neil. 1999b. Econom ic and Social Characteristics of the

New Jersey Party and Charter Boat Industry. Prepared by the Ecopolicy Center for

Agriculture, Environmental and Resource Issues, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment

Station/Cook College, Rutgers the State Univers ity of New Jers ey.

North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. 1993. Description of North Caro lina's Coastal

Fishery Resources, 1972-1991. Morehead City, North Carolina Department of Environment

and Natural Resources, Division of Marine Fisheries. 213 pp.

Wilson, Douglas and Bonnie J. McC ay. 1998 Social and Cultural Impact Assessment of the

High ly Migratory Species Management Plan and the Amendment to the Atlan tic Billfish

Management Plan. Prepared for the High ly Migratory Species Office, National Marine

Fisheries Service, National Oce anic and Atm ospheric Administration, U.S. Department of

182

Comm erce, July 1998. New Brunswick, NJ: The Ecopolicy Center, Rutgers the State

University.

McC ay, Bonnie J., Belinda Blinkoff, Rob bie Blinkoff, and Dav id Bart. 1993. Part 2, Phase I,

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December 31, 1993. 179 pp.

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